Maize, makkai, or our good old bhutta is one of the chief sources of energy in the human diet. Ranking second in world grain production, after wheat, it is one of the most important crops in the world.
A brief historical review reveals that maize grass cultivation originated in Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Known as “poor man’s cereal”, it has many nutritional qualities.

A study at Cornell University indicates that cooking corn unleashes beneficial nutrients including carotenoids (plant version of vitamin A) that can substantially reduce the chance of heart disease and cancer. Further, it is reported that cooking corn significantly boosts the grain’s health-giving anti-oxidant activity.

Despite conventional opinion that processing fruits and vegetables lowers their nutritional value, cooked corn retains its anti-oxidant activity despite the loss of vitamin C. In fact, cooking increases the anti-oxidants in corn by about 53 per cent. Cooked corn also releases ferulic acid, a cancer-fighting compound. These benefits are more pronounced in sweet corn.
Ferulic acid is a unique phyto-chemical found mostly in grains and in very low amounts in fruits and vegetables. It is found in very high levels in corn. Cooking corn increases the amount of ferulic acid significantly.

Although corn is yellow due to carotene, it has small amounts of beta-carotene. The role of carotenes in the prevention of oxidative reactions and cancers is noteworthy.
Rich in carbohydrates, corn provides minerals and vitamins like potassium, phosphorus, iron and thiamine. Corn oil is rich in poly-unsaturated fatty acids (55 per cent), mono-unsaturated fatty acids (32 per cent) and saturates (12 per cent). The former two lower LDL (bad cholesterol). Corn oil, therefore, is a good choice for heart patients.

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