| Crocheter's Health Tips by Patricia Howard |
| Healthy Snacks Snacking is a way of life for many of us. Snacking can help keep us going through our busy days! Snacking can keep our stomachs happy until meal time. Unfortunately, many of the foods we commonly snack on are high in fat, sugar and sodium. If we snack on these foods daily they can affect our good health. We can still enjoy snacking but we can make snacking choices that are good for us. Here are some ideas to help make snacking better for us: Instead of snacking on impulse, plan snacks ahead of time like you would ordinary meals. Try to keep a snacking schedule. Have regular snack breaks at midmorning, midafternoon and evening. Try to choose snacks that are low in fat, salt and sugar. Raw fruits and veggies make excellent snacks. Unsweetened cereals such as toasted o's or chex cereals are great. Unbuttered microwave popcorn is a fun treat. Unsweetened juices are really easy. Lowfat yogurt is also another great snack. (I personally like to snack on the unsweetened applesauce that you can buy in the individual cups at the store.) There are many possibilities! When snacking, try to keep to the serving size. A good rule is keep your snacks to about a handful or about 1/2 cup. One whole fruit is also a serving size. I hope this article encourages you to snack in healthier ways! Enjoy your snacking! |