Snacking- is it good or bad

In today’s fast paced life, people have no time and hence compromise on their health by skipping major meals- breakfast, lunch and dinner. Sometimes they tend to skip these meals leading to long gaps which gives rise to acidity, bloating and drops your metabolic rate. And as we all know that lower the metabolism, higher is the chance of gaining weight.

So it is always said to have small frequent meals to keep your metabolism at par. Most people complaint that they don’t have time to eat frequently as they are tied up with work. According to me, there are quite a few healthy things which are handy and can be kept at your desk like almonds/walnuts/raisins/roasted chanas/roasted soya beans/fruits for munching. Snacking can be good at times. It turns a bad habit when people start binging in the name of snacking. There are many who unconsciously also binge on unhealthy items even if they are not hungry. This could be due to liking towards certain kinds of snack food.

Binging happens while watching television or surfing the computer. People don’t realise the quantity they are binging on. Some people have the bad habit of binging when they are stressed thus having an adverse effect on their weight. Foods which are irresistible and commonly munched are popcorns, chips, wafers, chocolates and the likes which are not healthy options and eventually affect one’s weight.

On the other hand, munching between meals can actually reduce your overall calorie intake by curbing overeating in your next meal provided the quality and quantity is taken into consideration.

To avoid binging later, snacking healthy foods in small quantities can help you stay on track. You can actually use this to your advantage. If you know you are going out to a big dinner with friends or going to attend a party, try to eat something healthy at home like salads/soups/buttermilk before you leave home or office so that you tend to binge less in the party maintaining the portion size.

Even if you are snacking on healthy options, make sure you are controlling your portion size not exceeding the overall caloric intake. These days there are ample variety of wafers seeking children and adults attention! Eating such junk becomes a habit eventually not realizing the consequences later. So parents have to be well guided on ‘healthy snacking’.