Benefits And Disadvantages Of Corn As A Food Source Example

Benefits And Disadvantages Of Corn As A Food Source Example Benefits And Disadvantages Of Corn As A Food Source â€" Essay Example > The paper “ Benefits And Disadvantages Of Corn As A Food Source” is an exceptional example of an assignment on family and consumer science. Americans have been harvesting and consuming corn for nearly four centuries now.   It is a pre-Columbian New World crop widely used among Native Americans.   It has since become a staple of the American diet.   On a personal level, corn is something which my family eats quite often.   It is from that standpoint that I chose to write about it. Corn has long been shown by nutrition experts to offer a variety of health benefits some of which are known to the public, others less so.   First of all, corn stands as an excellent source of both fiber and carbohydrates.   Secondly, it contains large amounts of vitamins B1, B5, C, and E as well as folic acid, magnesium, and phosphorous.   Lastly, corn has high levels of lutein, a substance which protects against heart disease and muscular degeneration.   These facts together demonstrate that corn is just the benefit to health many claims it to be. High fructose corn syrup, due to its widespread commercial availability, is very difficult to avoid consuming.   It exists in almost every food product that we eat.   Unfortunately, high fructose corn syrup has been shown to be a factor in heart disease.   As well, many regard it as being a leading cause of obesity among the public.   Due to its chemical nature, the human body cannot break it down the same way as natural sugar.   In many food products, it is used as a substitute for natural sugar.   That is one of the main reasons that it is so often found in so many products. Learning more about it has better informed me as to the extent my family should eat corn and other corn-based products.   My family and I consider corn to be a staple of our diet.   Though because I have four small children and a diabetic husband, I must pay attention to all the food products we consume.   Prior to addressing this topic, I was u naware of the hazardous effects which high fructose corn syrup can have upon the health of an individual.   In the future, I aim to minimize my family’ s intake of this latter product.   Otherwise, I plan to continue to purchase corn in its various other forms: corn starch, corn on the cob, corn syrup, canned corn, corn tortillas, and corn flour. I do not see any need to alter four centuries of corn consumption in American society.   With the exception of high fructose corn syrup, it will remain a favored product for my family.   Now that I have learned something about corn, I can without worry put it on my family’ s table.