Still scary after all these years: Movie theater popcorn

Longing for the days before digital movie-theater sound, digital projection, "IMAX Experience" blockbusters, and 3-D glasses (or at least, the current crop of 3-D glasses)? Well, here's some good news for the "remember-whens": Turns out movie popcorn is just as yummy—and gloriously bad for you—today as it was 15 years ago.

The L.A. Times (via Hacking Netflix) reports that the Center for Science in the Public Interest just wrapped up its latest survey of movie popcorn (the last one was 15 years ago, apparently) and in terms of nutritional value, "little has changed."

OK, so how bad is movie popcorn for you? Well, consider this when you settle in for "Twilight: New Moon" over the Thanksgiving break: according to the L.A. Times, a "medium," 20-cup serving of popcorn at a Regal theater crams in a whopping 1,200 calories, 60 grams of saturated fat, and 980 milligrams of sodium ... and that's before they douse it in that mysterious, "butter-flavored" topping, which tacks on another 200 calories.

That's equivalent to three Quarter Pounders and "12 pats of butter," the Times story warns. Yum! Er ... I mean, horrible, horrible.

AMC's medium popcorn fared a little better—nutritionally speaking—than Regal's, according to the survey, but only because AMC's medium serving is just nine cups versus Regal's 20.

Last but not least, Cinemark's medium, 14-cup serving of popcorn serves up a hefty 760 calories but just three grams of saturated fat, the Times reports, far less than Regal or AMC popcorn. Why the saturated-fat gap? Because Cinemark pops its kernels in canola oil instead of coconut oil.

Of course, the CSPI survey makes no mention of how tasty movie popcorn is, and as the National Association of Theater Owners told the Times, moviegoers have tended to turn their noses up at healthier options, like air-popped popcorn (yuck).

Besides, I'd venture to guess that most of us are going to the movies—and thus, pigging out on movie popcorn—far less often now than we were 15 years ago. Back then, there were no downloadable movies (and no Web, come to think of it), no living-room HDTVs or 7.1 surround-sound systems, nor any consumer-grade DVD players (which didn't go on sale until 1997). I used to go to the movies once, twice a week back in the day; now that I have my 46-inch Sony HDTV, though, I only go to the theater maybe once, twice, three times a year. No wonder I'm so much healthier now! (Riiiiiiiight.)

In any case ... if you're head's spinning over all the changes in movie theater technology in the past decade or so, don't despair: that the tub of popcorn in your lap can still kill you.

So, quick survey: Is movie popcorn a menace, or a munchy delight (or both)?

Related:
Movie popcorn still a nutritional horror, study finds [Los Angeles Times, via Hacking Netflix]