Corn and Corn on a Cob are generally very sweet. Corn is naturally full of sugar. It was deliberately bred by people in Mexico back around 7,000 years ago to provide quick energy. It was even at the first Thanksgiving, as the American Indians had come to rely on this food. How well do corn and corn on a cob fit into a healthy diet?

First, the basic information on corn. Corn is a vegetable, and it grows on a stalk. Most of us have seen photos of fields of corn - tall, green stalks with the corn growing on a cob within a green husk. They sell those husk-corn in the supermarket in the summer. I remember many summers of husking corn cobs for my mom to cook for us.

The reason we all love corn is that it is VERY sweet and full of sugar :). A half cup of corn has 14.1g of carbs in it! It has hardly ANY fiber. Compare that say with broccoli which has a lot of fiber and only 1.7g of sugar. You get about this same amount from baby corn too. If anything it's a bit sweeter.

If you go by the ear - i.e. corn on the cob - you get about 17.1g of carbs per ear. You do get some nutrition in here, of course. This includes:

Thiamine - 13%
Folate - 8%
Vitamin C - 8%
Phosphorus - 7%
Magnesium - 6%
Niacin - 6%

Now, of course, if you're on a maintenance level in low carb, eating corn isn't out of the question. If you are currently at 60g a day as your daily level, then 17.1g fits into that. If you had corn on the cob with 2 burgers without a bun as your dinner, with a pickle and a bunch of black olives, that would stll be under 20g. You could have another 20g for lunch and breakfast and still be within your daily limit.

However, if you're actively trying to lose a lot of weight and are down in the 20g or 30g per day level, you can see how corn would blow out your entire daily amount of sugar. Still, even then, if everything else you ate that day was pretty much zero carb, it could be done. You just have to ask yourself how much you want that sugary corn, and plan accordingly

 

 

It's funny how we decide to give different vegetables different names. How come apples of all shapes and sizes are apples - but we have cucumbers, green squash and zucchinis?

First off, all squash are of course related, including yellow squash, butternut squash, etc. We're just talking about the green ones here. The main green squash that you see are the cucumber and zucchini. All other green squash are then lumped into a descriptive category of ... green squash.

CUCUMBERS
I love cucumbers! My favorite recipe involves cutting them into half moon slices and soaking them in soy sauce, vinegar, etc. Not only that, but they have only 1.8g carbs per 1/2 cup. Be sure to include cukes on your salads, as a snack, whenever you can.

ZUCCHINI
Zucchini are great for you too. They have 3.3g per 1/2 cup, so slightly more, but still really low carb and full of nutrition. Zucchini are great when they're grilled up and served with steak or grilled chicken or seafood.

GREEN SQUASH
Really, green squash usually refers to zucchini, but it can refer to other squash that happen to be green in color. Depending on the variety, they would have around 3g per 1/2 cup.

Onion Types

Do you love onions? They add amazing flavor to a variety of dishes. Here are carb counts for different types of onion, and suggestions for uses of each one.

Onions are actually types of lillies, and have been used in cooking for at least 7,000 years. They are one of our oldest food sources. Many societies felt onions brought strength and courage, and they were a favorite food of armies. Onions add a great flavor to recipes and are also antioxidants. Onions have potassium and vitamin C in them. Some studies even show that eating 1/2 onion each day can raise your HDL levels by 30%.

I did a LOT of research to try to find different carb levels for the different types of onions. Every website and source I found listed all varieties of onions as having the same carb counts. The total carb counts varied by 1g or so from site to site but of course most judged "per onion" and who knows exactly what a "normal sized" onion is :) The per cup figure I list is the average of the values I found.

Yes, 5g per serving might be high for induction. However, onions are VERY healthy and it's worth it to incorporate them into your diet plans.

Vidalia Onion
One of the most popular onions is a sweet variety first grown in Georgia. It was named after a city there that hosted a large Farmer's Market. Vidalias are the style used in "blooming onions" and are usually used in this manner or in onion rings. A whole vidalia is usually around 1 cup.
1/2 cup serving - 5g
Fiber - 1g
Net Carbs - 4g

Italian Red Onion
These colorful onions are often used in salads to add a lively color to them - either a ring or two laid on top, or diced red cubes are tossed over the top of the salad. Italian Reds can be sweet like a Vidalia or more mild. These are usually served raw in salads.
1/2 cup serving - 5g
Fiber - 1g
Net Carbs - 4g

Yellow Onion
The staple in many traditional recipes, yellow onions are cut into cubes and plunked along with meat dishes. They're used in soups and casseroles. They are usually not very flavorful but are quite inexpensive.
1/2 cup serving - 5g
Fiber - 1g
Net Carbs - 4g

Pearl Onion
Pearl onions are small, white onions that are often used in beef stews and other meat dishes. They have a mild flavor and are usually served whole, cooked in the sauce or juice of a dish.
1/2 cup serving - 5g
Fiber - 1g
Net Carbs - 4g

Green Onions
Also called scallions, it is the green "leaves" of this onion that are eaten. The bright green tops are used as decoration in soups, salads and vegetable dishes.
1/2 cup serving - 4g
Fiber - 1g
Net Carbs - 3g