Life> no use

Snack attack: Tasty, healthy foods to nibble

Updated: 2006-08-09 14:40

Its 3 p.m. and getting the Power-Point ready for the morning meeting is starting to seem like climbing Everest without oxygen. Hiding under your desk for a quick snooze isn't an option. So you do the next best thing — you grab a snack.

Of course, you're not alone. Whether it happens to be at the same time every afternoon or in the middle of the night, most Americans snack about as often as they eat regular meals. According to the International Deli-Dairy-Bakery Association in Madison, Wisc., 90 percent of us indulge in a snack on any given day, while only 75 percent eat breakfast and 88 percent eat lunch.

But contrary to conventional wisdom, it turns out that snacking isn't bad for you and is actually serving a biological need.

"By snacking you are fueling your body and maintaining your energy level, blood sugar level, and appetite level," says Dana Ellis, a dietician at the UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles.

Hold off on the Hostess
That doesn't mean that Ding Dongs and gummy bears are the way to go. Everyone knows that even if they are tasty, they pack in calories, refined sugar and sometimes trans-fats — all of which contribute to weight gain and further medical problems. The risks don't keep us from wanting them. According to Packaged Facts, the publishing division of MarketResearch.com, retail sales of snack foods in the U.S. for 2005 totaled $61.4 billion, with the largest category being candy at $19.9 billion.

There's a more immediate reason to skip the vending machine, though. While candy may feel like it's soothing your craving, it's not. Eating candy or other unhealthy snacks such as potato chips, donuts, or cookies will amp you up for the time being, but cause your blood sugar levels to quickly peak and just as quickly, drop. That in turn, makes the craving worse and makes you lethargic, moody and probably intolerable, says Dr. Arthur Agatston, author of The South Beach Diet, who says it is crucial to avoid foods that cause big swings in blood sugar.

"If your blood sugar drops too much, that's when you really lose self control," he says. "When I started our diet, I used to want a snack in the afternoon, so I would scarf down a couple of low-fat muffins and a coffee thinking it was healthy."

Sugar causes you to eat more
Dr. Joel Fuhrman, a family physician in Flemington, N.J., and author of the nutrition book "Eat to Live," also says that eating food that is low in nutrients, such as candy bars, causes a person to eat more because the body still needs to meet its nutritional needs.