What exactly is corn?

[susie]

Corn for me is the stuff that grows on a cob. Some people call wheat corn though.

[Purdy]

The criteria is whether it comes from the reproductive part of a plant or the vegetative part of the plant, if it comes from the reproductive part of the plant, it’s a fruit. If it comes from the vegetative part of the plant, it’s a vegetable.

However botanically speaking, corn is a caryopsis, or dry fruit — popularly known as a grain.

But if you add peanuts and carmel to it then its Cracker Jacks

Dr. McDougall likes Cracker Jacks, doesn't he

[slugmom]

I believe corn is a grain.

I think the confusion comes in that it is served like a veggie.

[JeffN]

The criteria is whether it comes from the reproductive part of a plant or the vegetative part of the plant, if it comes from the reproductive part of the plant, it’s a fruit. If it comes from the vegetative part of the plant, it’s a vegetable.

However botanically speaking, corn is a caryopsis, or dry fruit — popularly known as a grain.

This is correct and the "botanical" definitions.

The confusion comes in because in the world of nutrition, foods are classified into the food groups because not by botanical definition but because they have similar "nutritonal" composition.

For example, peppers, tomatoes, & cucumbers are all botanically fruits but nutritionally they are put in the vegetable group.

Nutritionally speaking, foods are grouped together because of similar macro-nutrient composition (protein, fat, carb)

It can be confusing. However, I think grouping foods by "calorie density" may be the simplest & best system there is.

In Health,
Jeff

[auntemmy]

The criteria is whether it comes from the reproductive part of a plant or the vegetative part of the plant, if it comes from the reproductive part of the plant, it’s a fruit. If it comes from the vegetative part of the plant, it’s a vegetable.

However botanically speaking, corn is a caryopsis, or dry fruit — popularly known as a grain.

But if you add peanuts and carmel to it then its Cracker Jacks

Dr. McDougall likes Cracker Jacks, doesn't he

Purdy you are so funny!!

[satlew]

Based on the nutritional similarity criteria I believe sweet corn is considered a vegetable and dent corn (corn meal, etc.) is considered a grain.

[JeffN]

Greetings,

Botanically speaking, corn is a cereal grain.

Nutritionally speaking, corn is counted in the Carbohydrate group, which includes grains, starchy vegetables and legumes/beans and the foods made from them.

However, IMHO, the best way to think of corn is in relations to its calorie density, which is 450 calories/pound. This is similar to most other intact whole grains, and starchy veggies, which makes it low in calorie density.

For the record, most vegetables average around 100 with some as high as 198 (carrots). So, corn has over 2x the calorie density of what even the highest veggies have.

In Health
Jeff

[janisphilbin]

This reminds me of something my father said when I was young. We were enjoying some corn on the cob and my father had to remark that Corn is what they fatten cows with. That has always stuck with me and hence ruined my enjoyment of it. I still have a hard time eating much of it. Boy, childhoods can sure mess you up sometimes, huh.? On the plus side my Dad ran a fruit/vegetable stand in the summers to supplement his teacher's income, so I grew up eating lots of fresh produce. Guess things weren't all bad. Ha!

But Jeff, a lot of diets have you stay away from corn and peas, is this because they are considered higher carb?

JP

[Chumly]

The natural food for cows is grass, which has a much lower calorie density than corn. That is the reason why it is fattening for cows. For humans, it is a middle of the road choice. There are some foods with a higher caloric density (nuts, seeds, processed foods) and some foods that are lower (fruits and vegetables).

[JeffN]

I didnt know that beans and legumes were carbo groups. I thought they were protein. Well maybbe Ill stop eating corn like a veggie and more like a grain. (maybe what is slowing my wieght loss when I eat alot of it)
Deb

In regard to conventional nutrition food groups, beans are counted in both the carbohydrate group and/or the protein group due to their nutritional analysis. They are fairly high in both.

In regard to calorie density, most beans are around 550-600 calories per pound, just slightly over the average of most intact whole grains and starchy vegetables, which are around 450-500.

The traditional nutrition food groups can be confusing and not very helpful. This is why calorie density is so much easier, and a better system to follow.

In Health
Jeff

[JeffN]

But Jeff, a lot of diets have you stay away from corn and peas, is this because they are considered higher carb?

There are a lot of crazy diets out there with a lot of crazy recommendations.

Many of the anti-carb diets of the last decade or so, recommend you avoid corn and peas because they are carbs and these diets are anti carbs.

Some of the diets based on the GI recommend you avoid them due to their GI.

These are both ineffective diets and illogical reasons to avoid these 2 very healthy and nutrient dense foods.

In Health
Jeff

[JeffN]

Just found this http://www.calorieking.com/foods/ If you click around you can find calorie density and even compare different vegetables ie corn vs cauliflower...

Thanks.

But, a word of caution.

While it is a good site to look foods up on, their "recommended" scale for calorie density is way above mine and what is known to be effective. They list foods of a calorie density of 1.5 to 4.0 as an "average calorie choice". This is a calorie density of around 700 to 1800 which for most everyone will cause weight gain.

In Health
Jeff