Choosing healthy snacks throughout the day can help you and your family reach hard-to-meet nutrition goals, stay energized for learning and play, and prevent over-eating at mealtime. Lots of food companies want to sell snack foods, but most typical packaged foods are less than ideal choices. Most have little nutrition or health benefit and often too much fat, sugar, or salt (and sometimes all three).
Here are some of the healthiest snacks we could come up with, recommended portion sizes, and benefits:
Fresh fruit
Sliced kiwi, frozen grapes, chunks of melon…the list is long! About 1 cup of fresh (or frozen) fruit is full of nutritional benefits including fiber, vitamins, mineral, antioxidants, with little to no fat or sodium. The natural sugar in fruit is fine so most people don’t have to worry about restricting fruit for this reason.
Nuts
1 oz (about 28 almonds, for example) provides protein, fiber, heart-healthy monounsaturated fat, and is a good source of vitamin E and other important nutrients. Buy unsalted, natural nuts most often. You can mix with small amounts of unsweetened dried fruit, such as raisins, for a home-made trail mix.
Edamame
Soybeans are a fantastic source of plant protein and fiber, plus they provide some essential fatty acids and isoflavones, all for about 130 calorieacs per serving (1/2 cup shelled). Look for them in the refrigerated produce section or freezer section in select markets. To eat, push the beans out of the pod and into your mouth, and discard the outer shell.
Veggies and Hummus
Raw vegetables are nutritional superstars, and when you pair them with hummus you get the added benefit of protein, fiber, and healthy fat, making them more satisfying and delicious. Look for the individual containers of hummus for easy portion control, available at whole-sale clubs and in the refrigerated produce and/or near the deli at your market.
Yogurt
Low-fat or fat-free yogurt is a great way to add calcium and protein at snack time, with the added benefit of the healthy bacteria for your digestion. The best choice is always plain, and you can add fresh or frozen fruit to make it slightly sweet. If you prefer the flavored ones, just keep your eye on the sugar. A serving of yogurt is about 1 cup, which would have 12 grams of naturally-occurring sugar from milk.
These are just a few examples, but the possibilities are endless: whole wheat crackers with low-fat cheese, apple slices with natural peanut butter, we could go on and on! Most importantly, we encourage you to think about snack time as an opportunity to incorporate whole, nutritious food most of the time. Save the treats for simply that, just a treat!
All Blogs are written by Professionals in the fields of Nutrition, Human Development and Diabetes.