Provide healthy snacks between main meals
Snacks
Healthy snacks are part of a healthy and varied diet.
Examples of healthy snacks: Vegetables, fruit, nuts, dairy and soya drink.
Healthy
Healthy snacks such as vegetables, fruit, nuts, dairy and soy drinks make you feel satiated and keep your blood sugar stable. They contain no sugar and few calories. This is good for your teeth and prevents obesity.
How many healthy snacks do you need?
If you eat a healthy meal 3 times a day, snacks are not really necessary. But if you like to spread your food more throughout the day, you can have a healthy snack 3 times a day of about 100-150 calories each time, such as a small piece of fruit, vegetables like cucumber or carrots or a small handful of unsalted nuts.
Unhealthy snacks
There are also unhealthy snacks such as chips, chocolate, biscuits, pastries, ice cream and soft drinks. These are high in sugar, fat, salt and calories. They are bad for your teeth as well as your weight.
'Continue-eating factor'
‘Processed’ products like chips, biscuits or chocolate have what is known as a ‘continue eating factor’. This means it is difficult to stop eating once you have started. As a result, you eat too much of them. For example, you might want to have a small piece of chocolate or a small bowl of crisps, but by the end of the evening, the bar is finished or the bag empty anyway. Less processed, healthy snacks such as vegetables, fruit, nuts, dairy products and soy drinks do not have a ‘continue eating factor’, so you stop eating or drinking sooner. So when you feel hungry, always try to have a healthy snack.
Seduction
Get healthy snacks in the house and put them in a visible place so that you are reminded and take them. Don’t buy unhealthy snacks or put them in an invisible place so you won’t be tempted.
Exception
Of course, it is great to eat a cake, a piece of chocolate or some crisps once in a while. Buy it exceptionally, take a small portion and eat it mindfully.
Healthy snacks
Find more recipes of healthy snacks here
