Know your Snacks!

While artery-clogging transfats capture many of the current headlines about healthier eating, it is also important to limit saturated fats for good heart health.

For snacks, look for products that do not contain any trans fat and have 2-3 grams or less of saturated fat.
Look at the ingredients; if you see “partially hydrogenated oil” anywhere in the list, the product contains trans fat.

Since fat packs in more calories per gram than protein or carbohydrates, it’s important to keep the fat content of your snacks moderate (typically less than 10 grams of fat).
That may seem like a lot of fat, but snacks like nuts or seeds are rich in healthy poly- and monounsaturated fats. Plus, reducing the level of fat too much with snacks might leave you feeling less than satisfied and searching for other munchies-and that defeats the purpose of the snack.

Answer C: Balanced with two of the three major nutrients (fat, protein, carbohydrates) with at least a couple grams of Fibre.

A snack that’s going to keep your energy up for hours needs to have a balance of carbohydrates, protein, and fat-or at least two of the three. In fact, carbohydrates are your body’s main source of energy (and your brain’s preferred source). Combining carbohydrates with fat and protein will give you a balanced snack which will help sustain your energy levels. A snack containing around 150-200 calories is an appropriate snack for people sticking to a diet below 2,000 calories a day. If your calorie needs are above 2,000 per day, aim for snacks that are about 200-250 calories each. Fibre keeps you feeling satisfied for longer, so make sure your snacks pack in at least 4 grams of fibre. Fat also creates a feeling of satisfaction, so don’t be too enticed by “fat-free” snacks. Avoid going too low in calories and/or fat-it’s likely your snack will leave you hungry for more in no time.

A healthy snack can come in many different forms. Think of snacks as a way to keep your hunger from taking over between meals, sustain your energy throughout the day and sneak in nutrients (think fibre, protein, calcium and iron) that you might not be fitting into meals. When choosing snacks, choose the option that works with your lifestyle, and be flexible. Some days, a homemade whole-food snack will work, some days a good quality protein bar eaten on the go is your only option. Think outside of the box and use the criteria mentioned in questions 1 and 2 to make the best choice.

Something that is naturally sweet, like fresh fruit, dried fruit, or freeze-dried fruit chips.

When you get sweetness from fruit, you get a lot more than just sweet flavour. Satisfying a craving for sweets with a piece of fruit or cup of berries delivers vitamins, antioxidants and fibre along with the sweet taste. Plus, getting into a habit of reaching for fruit when you want something sweet is a great way to prevent calorie overload (think how much easier it is to tear through a big cookie than a bowl of juicy watermelon chunks). One word of warning regarding dried fruits: Use them as accents to an unsweetened food (like adding chopping dried figs to plain yogurt or sprinkling chopped dried apricots onto unsweetened porridge) rather than on their own, since it’s easier to go overboard on dried fruit (which is dehydrated into a fraction of its original size, making each piece smaller than its fresh fruit equivalent.

Regular cream cheese has about 50 calories a tablespoon, as does strawberry jam. A tablespoon of peanut butter has 95 calories.
The ricotta cheese is a calorie bargain, with 2 tablespoons having only about 25 calories. Spread some on a rice cake for a tasty treat.

Some yogurts are healthy, and if this had been a “low fat” version, it would have been the best choice. But low-fat yogurts with fruit on the bottom can have 150 or more calories per individual carton. Rice pudding and chocolate puddings have about 130 to 140 calories per serving, depending on the brand. But half a banana has only about 45 calories, and the syrup adds about 50 calories so this adds up to less than 100 calories for a delicious treat, and of course if you can manage with a little less of the chocolate syrup, so much the better!

Eating 2 to 3 healthy snacks a day is an excellent way to control blood sugar, boost energy, and control your weight. Going for long periods of time without food can trigger overeating and binges. It’s better to plan ahead. Eat small meals, and have healthy, high-fibre, satisfying snacks available throughout the day

Believe it or not, the two fried-chicken drumsticks, even though they are fried, have the fewest calories. At about 250 for the two drumsticks.
If you take off the breaded coating, you still get the flavour of the chicken and can save yourself about 75 more calories.
All the other selections have between 400 to 500 calories each – too much for most people as just a snack.

Of the four choices, grapefruit juice has the fewest calories per ounce. 350ml of grapefruit juice has about 150 calories.

All the others have about 200 calories in the same serving because they all have added sugar.

Better yet, when you are thirsty, try mineral water with just a few tablespoons of juice. It’s refreshing and tasty, but you’ll be taking in almost no calories!

A cup of fresh strawberries contains about 45 calories.
A cup of fresh raspberries or blackberries contains 60 calories, and a cup of fresh blueberries have 80 calories.

Berries are rich in vitamins A and C and contains fibre, and you may opt for a variety of berries to liven up your snacks, breakfasts, or desserts. Also, if you’re snacking on dried berries, keep in mind that a half-cup of dried berries is equivalent to a cup of fresh berries.