Dry‐Milled Corn and Corn Products and Health: A Narrative Review

Corn (maize) is commonly consumed after dry-milling. Common products include whole or refined grits, cornmeal, corn flour, and more that can produce foods including polenta, tortillas, and tortilla chips, corn chips, breakfast cereals, and more. Processing can also include nixtamalization, which introduces alkali to the product. Whole grain products tend to be richer in nutrients that are lost when the bran and germ are removed to produce refined products. Epidemiological research supports the consumption of whole dry-milled corn products. Limited clinical trials tend to report positive results for whole grain products and mixed results for refined products. Critical needs exist for long-term dose-response studies of both whole and refined foods. Dry-milled products should be studied for potential impacts on macular health via zeaxanthin. The potential values that dry-milled corn products such as corn and tortilla chips, as well as breakfast cereal, as carriers for healthful foods should be explored.