We all love eating snacks, snacking is eating something in between your regular meals, it is a popular and common habit, which almost everyone does, but the big question that everyone asks ‘is snacking good or bad for you?’. This is a questionable topic, as many people consider snacking to be healthy, whereas other people think of it as one of the major causes of weight gain. Does snacking affect your weight? Can it be a part of a healthy diet and lifestyle? Let’s find out
Many people have the misconception of thinking about snacks as high-calorie unhealthy food, like chips, but that is not the case, anything you eat in between your main meals is a snack, it doesn’t have to be unhealthy, one of the main reasons why people snack is Hunger, other factors can affect this too, like location, activity and food availability, people often snack when appetizing and tasty food is around, even when they’re not hungry. One of the major reasons for obesity and weight gain is unhealthy snack choices caused due to temptation. People often believe that snacking every few hours can increase metabolism. However, most studies show that eating frequency has little or no effect on metabolism.
Does Snacking affect weight and appetite?
This is where people have formed different opinions on snacking, many people believe that snacking has a negative effect on the body and weight. Few studies have shown that people who snack regularly consumed more calories in a day than people who did not snack. snacks can bring feelings of fullness and satisfy your hunger, but they are often just lead to higher overall calorie consumption. But other sources have shown that snacking can help reduce hunger, especially if you are consuming a high protein or a high fiber snack, this also leads to consuming fewer calories in a day. Also a research conducted has shown that bedtime snacking can lead to decreased hunger the next morning. So the type of snack you eat effects your appetite.
Does snacking lead to weight gain?
Does snacking make you fat? While many people think that’s the case, it’s not true, many types of research have shown that snacking does not affect weight, what you eat is what affects your weight, eating healthy and high fiber food can actually help you lose weight. But some researches on lean men have shown increased in belly fat due to snacking. The results are varied, but as long as you consume healthy food, you should not be concerned about weight loss.
Tips for Healthy Snacking
You should keep in mind the calories of your snacks, as they are something which you eat in between meals, they are not your main meals, so they should be light and healthy. They should contain about 100 to 250 calories and not more than that. Make sure that your snacks contain high amounts of protein and fiber and protein. Some food choices are boiled eggs, apples, yogurt and many more.
The bottom line
The bottom line is that snacking is good for you if you are cautious about what you eat, otherwise it can only add to your problems, make sure you eat only how much your body requires, don’t give in to the temptations and opt for healthier snacks which will help you in a long run.
