Health and Wellness begin with Nutrition.

Snack Smart

Snacking often gets a bad rap, but when you plan snacks into a healthy eating plan, they can actually be beneficial.

Benefits
Spacing healthy meals and snacks 3 to 4 hours apart fuels your body and provides several benefits. It can:

• Aid in weight control. Healthy snacks prevent you from becoming ravenous and overeating at meals. Try spreading your calories into 3 small meals and 2-3 light snacks to help keep you full and keep cravings under control.
• Help you stay energized all day. Waiting too long to eat can cause your energy levels to drop.
• Boost your mood and improve brain power. Going too long without eating can result in drops in blood sugar, leaving you irritable and making it difficult to concentrate.

Considerations

• Use snacks to fill in the nutritional gaps of your diet. For example, if you don’t consume dairy at meals, have some milk, yogurt, or cheese.
• Snack only when you’re hungry. Skip the urge to nibble when you’re bored, frustrated, or stressed.
• Keep portion control in mind. Have a single serving of yogurt or count out a serving of whole-grain crackers and put on a plate. Eating directly from a multiple serving package can lead to overeating.
• Plan snacks ahead of time. Keep a variety of nutritious foods on hand, such as fruit, vegetables, low-fat cheese or yogurt, whole-grain crackers, or low-fat popcorn.

Healthy Snack Ideas:
For weight control, women should try to limit their snacks to no more than 150 to 200 calories each. The best snack is going to have a combination of carbohydrates and protein. Carbohydrates provide energy, while protein provides staying power.

• Slice a pear and enjoy with string cheese
• Pair an apple with three ounces of sliced turkey
• Have a serving of whole wheat crackers with a tablespoon of peanut butter
• Enjoy fresh veggies (peppers, carrots, zucchini, mushrooms, etc.) or half of a whole wheat pita with 2-3 tablespoons of hummus
• Spread a mini-bagel slice of whole grain bread with one tablespoon of peanut butter and sprinkle with cinnamon
• Munch on one cup of grapes with one serving of nuts (e.g. 12 almonds, 24 pistachios, 7 walnut halves, or 10 pecan halves)
• Layer one cup of low-fat/nonfat yogurt with a half cup berries and sprinkle with whole grain cereal
• Whip up a fruit smoothie made with one cup each of fruit and yogurt or milk
• Enjoy a half cup of low-fat cottage cheese topped with a half cup of fruit
• Nibble on a cup of whole grain cereal and half a cup of skim milk
• Savor a fat-free chocolate pudding cup topped with graham cracker crumbs and a dollop of whipped cream

Archives