Snacks can add up fast, according to researchers at Ohio State University. For a recent analysis, they reviewed dietary data from 23,708 U.S. adults over age 30 who had participated in the large National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHNES). The snacks people reported consuming were mostly convenience foods high in carbs and fats, sweets, and alcoholic and sugar-sweetened beverages, with low contributions from protein, dairy, fruits, grains, and vegetables.
The researchers found that snacks contributed almost a quarter of daily calories for NHNES enrollees— with about one-third of the daily added sugar intake. Specifically, the participants consumed 400 to 500 calories daily in snacks, often exceeding breakfast intake. In other words, snacks essentially added a meal’s worth of caloric intake without providing a balanced nutritional profile.
So if you do snack it’s worth reading your labels or even better eat food that have no label becuase they didn’t come out of a packet!
- Carrots and hummus
- Nuts and seeds
- Left over dinner
- Home made snacks e.g. bacon and egg cups
- Home made: Fat bombs
There are lots of ways to keep your hunger in check but often it’s about what you eat at your first meal. If you get enough protein into that first meal you will sail through the rest of the day without too many hinger pangs! AND you’ll preserve muscle mass because the key amino acid from protein that helps perform that task will be in sufficient supply.