Polenta is a cheap and nutritious food that stimulates digestion, restores hormonal balance, removes excess water from the tissues, and provides the body with energy. Polenta is low in calories and contains no gluten, which means that it can be consumed by persons who are gluten intolerant.
Polenta diet
There is a diet based on consuming polenta for two days a week, which prescribes eating about 5-600 g polenta during one day whenever you feel hungry. In addition, you may eat soup or salad without oil or other fats at lunchtime, as well as 100 g lean roasted meat or a hard-boiled egg. During the day you need to drink plenty of fluids such as water, herbal tea, grapefruit and lemon juice, tomato juice and coffee without sugar. After following this diet for two days, you can eat a regular diet for the rest of the week without excess calorie intake and without bread, which needs to be replaced with polenta. After a month of following this diet you will lose 3-4 kilograms.
A tip: do not cook cornmeal until it starts smoking, as burning creates poisons such as acrylamide; also, beneficial amino acids break down and are replaced by carcinogens. Boil the cornmeal just until it becomes slightly sticky and doesn’t separate from the spoon.
The health benefits of polenta
Polenta stimulates digestion and ensures a sense of fullness for a prolonged time. 100 grams of bread contain 200 calories, whereas the same amount of polenta contains only 100 calories. Vitamin A is an antioxidant naturally found in corn, which is extremely important for the proper functioning of the body, as well as for a fast metabolism, which contributes to a faster weight loss.
Polenta prevents the deposition of fat and provides quality complex carbohydrates and ensures better digestion, never causing bloating like bread does. (Bloating occurs if the fibers in the grain are not sufficiently decomposed, and the yeast ferments in the intestine.)
Besides containing fewer calories, polenta is also ideal for detoxification, purifies the blood and cleanses the digestive system. Due to its high fiber content, it improves digestion and helps the proper functioning of the gall bladder and the liver.
Polenta is rich in carotenoids, especially lutein, a substance known for its rejuvenating properties, protecting the eyesight, the heart and the brain. Moreover, cornmeal contains carotenoids which are easier to digest than those in carrots or spinach. Polenta helps the development of healthy bacteria in the large intestine; also, given that it is composed of complex carbohydrates that don’t permit the storage of fat and are absorbed more slowly, polenta is a perfect ingredient in slimming diets.
Warning!
Exclusive consumption of polenta for long periods of time can cause a disease called pellagra. Also, genetically modified corn may affect fertility and may lead to liver and kidney disease.