Ask a Dietitian

One of the keys to living well and eating well is consistency. Consistency with your workouts, with sleep, with social connections and consistency with eating. When it comes to eating, I am a big supporter of snacks. I encourage my kids to have a snack between meals, I recommend snacking to most of my clients and I snack regularly. Snacks help provide consistency. They help stabilize blood sugars for consistent energy and ensure that you consistently get the nutrients you need by filling nutritional gaps. To be consistent with snacking it helps to plan ahead, have healthy foods on hand, and eat mindfully. There are a few things to consider when selecting your snack.

Nutrients: A good snack should contain a source of energy for fuel and nutrients for health. A more substantial snack should contain both protein and fibre to help fill you up.

Hunger: Try not to snack because you have nothing better to do. Snack when you are hungry and not bored. If 3 hours after your last meal you are still not hungry, consider the possibility that your last meal was a bit big and adjust your portions next time.

Portions: If you purchase food in large containers avoid eating from the box, serve yourself a portion instead. Choosing a snack with protein and fibre will help fill you up and keep portion sizes smaller.

Fruits and Vegetables: Including a fruit or vegetable at your snack either alone or with other foods provides a source of nutrients in addition to filling you up with fluid and fibre.

Whole ingredients: If your snack is coming from a package the first place you should look is the ingredient list. It should be made with whole foods such as whole oats, nuts and dried fruit. They should be as unprocessed as possible and free of preservatives.

Low in sugar: A recent poll by Leger and KIND Snacks revealed that 45% of Canadian women use the nutrition facts table and 30% look at the ingredient list to determine the amount of sugar in a food. Look for snacks that are 5g or less sugar. This would be considered low sugar based on the new health Canada labelling proposal. Over ½ the KIND bars contain only 5 grams of sugar per serving (some of that being from fruit), in comparison to some with over 22g and chocolate bars clocking in at 27g. Not to mention they are high in both protein and fibre (7g each) in comparison to 1 g or less in other “granola” bars”

Taste: You will be more inclined to eat your snack if it tastes good in addition to being healthy like the KIND bars.

My favorite snacks:

Cut vegetables and hummus. (if you want to make it more fun add a few vegetable chips)

Fruit and yogurt. Berries and grapes are quick and easy, melons can be cut in advance.

Apple slices and cheese (use an apple corer)

Whole grain crackers with nut butter

KIND Bars or KIND Healthy Grains

Apple sauce and pumpkin seeds

Trail mix

Peanut butter and banana whole grain wraps.