No doubt about it, snacking is compelling. There is a huge snack industry here in the US and beyond--so much that we are essentially programmed to snack. We have almost unlimited food options available at every corner--convenience stores, vending machines at school and work, as well as social occasions--snacks are everywhere.
Snacking is a multi billion dollar industry in the US and beyond. Salty snacks alone amounted to 27 billion dollars in 2017. A 2017 survey found that 86% of Americans routinely purchase salty snacks--many of which are filled with simple carbohydrates (flour) as well as sugar.
Snacking has been increasing over the last 35 years and contributing more and more to our daily energy intake.
We have all been told to “eat frequent small meals” and to many that means snacking, almost all the time. Between breakfast and lunch, we have a snack, mid afternoon—snack, and even after dinner, and before bedtime, we have yet another snack. Snacking is so woven into our lives that it takes a conscious effort NOT to snack.
Why do we snack? There are many reasons including boredom, having a craving for something, being stressed, a habit, and social settings we may be in.
Snacking is not good for us, and here are a few reasons why you should avoid this tempting habit.
1. Almost any time we eat, insulin is released, insulin is the “fat storage” hormone, therefore each time we eat and release insulin we are in “fat storage” mode
2. Most snack foods are carbohydrate rich, not real food, and loaded with sugar
3. Snacking is a risk factor for poor diet
how to avoid snacking
Make sure you eat nutrient dense food until you are full at each meal.
Drink tea, water, or coffee between meals instead of snacking
Try setting a timer after your meal—this can be a game with yourself to “see if you can make it without snacking” before the next meal. If you eat, you restart the timer. After dinner, brush your teeth to avoid late night snacking
Remove the “snack foods” from your home or office, if you can’t remove them, hide them by putting them out of sight. There are many times I forgot about a box of cookies because I “hid” them from myself.
If you must have a snack or are still working on cutting this habit, focus on a “real food snack” (small portion of cheese, nuts, apple with almond butter, olives) and avoid carbohydrate and sugar dense snack foods.
pillar pointers
No snacking
If you must snack, do so from this grocery list
Make it easier not to snack, remove snacks from your surroundings and have a plan in place when you want to snack (water, coffee, tea)