Shake That Weight ^™ • 24th June 2013 • 13 years ago

Healthy Snack Ideas

We all snack more than we realise. It’s too easy to grab a chocolate bar or a bag of crisps instead of reaching for something healthier when we’re hungry.

If the snacks are there, we’ll eat them! However, they can be full of hidden horrors, like salt, sugar and saturated fats. And in time, too much of these can lead to serious health problems like heart attacks, strokes and type-2 diabetes.

Try these ideas to get you started:

• The easiest tip, is that if you don’t have the snacks in the house, you won’t be able to eat them! Skip that aisle in the supermarket and try to avoid the checkouts with loads of treats on display.
• Aim for three regular meals a day. So if you’re raiding the snack cupboard several times a day, have a think about the meals you’re eating and when. You could be filling up on calories when a meal would keep you going for longer.
• If you’re feeling peckish, try a glass of water instead. Chances are you’re thirsty rather than hungry.

Try our ideas for healthier sweet and savoury snacks – they’re delicious;

Healthier alternatives to sweet snacks

Try these ideas and see if you can chuck the chocolate!

Healthy snacks like fruit are great and count towards your 5-a-day.

• Melon, strawberries, grapes or whatever you have to hand. Look out for fruit that’s in season, it’s likely to be cheaper.
• Dried fruit – How about just a few pieces of mango, banana, pineapple, cranberries or raisins.
• Low fat fruit yoghurt.
• A handful of dry, reduced sugar cereal with a few raisins or sultanas.

Healthier savoury snack ideas

Instead of crisps, salted nuts or pork scratching’s, which can all be high in saturated fats, try:

• Baked crisps
• Small handful of unsalted mixed nuts
• Pumpkin and sunflower seeds
• Pitta bread and lower fat dips like salsa or reduced fat hummus
• Rice cakes with lower fat cream cheese and cucumber
• Celery sticks filled with lower fat cheese
• Homemade popcorn (without sugar or salt)
• Unsalted rice cakes or oatcakes