Microwave popcorn might seem like the ultimate convenient snack, but I'm gonna hold your hand while I say this: You're wrong.
Not only is air-popped popcorn tastier and healthier, but it's also cheaper in the long run. You can customize it to your liking, it's just as fast and easy to make, and it's not full of nonsense ingredients. If you're a microwave popcorn enthusiast, allow me to change your life for the better—with an expert to back me up.
Why Microwave Popcorn Is Bad
Let's start with the most obvious and glaring offense: Microwave popcorn has historically been packed with forever chemicals. (It might not be anymore—more on that in a second.) Specifically, the bags the popcorn comes in were lined with a grease- and water-resistant coating containing PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances). This chemical breaks down very slowly and has been linked to numerous adverse health effects, ranging from reproductive problems to cancer.
One study showed that the more microwave popcorn someone consumed, the higher their PFAS levels were in their blood, with some participants who consumed microwave popcorn every day having levels 63 percent higher than average. The good news is that in early 2024, the FDA ended the use of PFAS in food packaging, requiring manufacturers to exhaust existing packaging containing PFAS by June 2025. However, despite increased scrutiny of food packaging, there are ongoing lawsuits alleging that some brands still contain PFAS in their packaging. And I, for one, don't have equipment at home to test the lining of my food packaging to verify whether or not its contents are safe. At the bare minimum, look for PFAS-free claims on the label or website of your chosen microwave popcorn brand.
Regardless of potential packaging offenses, microwave popcorn is also bad for you in general. Or, perhaps, it could be much better for you.
“The popcorn itself in microwave popcorn is still a nutritious food, but it’s the additives that make the difference,” says Avery Zenker, registered dietitian at My Crohns and Colitis Team. “Microwave popcorn often includes oils (like palm oil, corn oil, or others), butter, salt, artificial and natural flavorings, preservatives, and colors.” And while those ingredients aren't necessarily harmful, chances are that you wouldn't be adding palm oil and buckets of butter to the popcorn you make at home. “A bag of popped microwave popcorn can contain over 35 percent of daily saturated fat recommendations,” she says.
Diets high in saturated fats have been linked to high cholesterol, heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and other conditions. Zenker also says that a bag of microwave popcorn can contain “over half of the daily recommended sodium intake for most adults.” And let's be real—it is all too easy to eat an entire bag of microwave popcorn.