It's barbecue season. I don't need to look at the calendar or feel the temperature to know that. I simply have to look outside and see my neighbor Brett making dinner. The other night I stopped to chat and see what he was cooking. He had some corn on the cob, the way I like it, wrapped in foil and set on the back of the coals.
Brett asked me what I knew about corn, because he had been told that it was a food with no nutritional value. I was surprised when I Googled for more information to learn that this is a commonly held belief.
Corn actually has many nutrients in reasonable quantities, including fiber, protein, thiamin, folate (yup, folate), vitamin C, and magnesium. All of these are important for your health!
Corn may get its bad reputation from its oil, which, as you've seen in previous writings here, is pro-inflammatory. However, an entire cob of corn only has 1.2 grams. The problem with corn fat is when it's extracted, concentrated, and used to cook/add fat to other foods (e.g., Fritos). A fresh cob of corn is a great type of carbohydrate to add to a summer barbecue. To change the fat makeup, try one of my grilling favorites: brush with olive oil instead of butter and sprinkle with a bit of rosemary and Parmesan cheese.
One word of advice when shopping for corn: if avoiding genetically modified foods is important to you, be sure you by your corn from a purveyor who can document that their product has not been so altered. That's what you'll find at stores like Whole Foods and farmer's markets. The more we ask for what's best, the less demand we create for these types of products and the more we encourage genetically modified foods to not be sold.