Why Choose Junk Snacks When You can Choose from These 10 Tasty & Healthy Dry Snacks Any Time

There are always two kinds of people. Some live to eat, some eat to live. Although there are various cuisines, choices, kinds of food, forms of nutrients, and everything else involved that creates every individual's dietary patterns and habits, there are certain aspects you can't possibly miss.

Eating the right food for a snack is extremely crucial. Usually, the evening is around that time of the day when one feels an extreme urge of hunger but there’s hardly any healthy eating options to choose from. As a result, most of the time we end up eating junk food. And regretting later. An unhealthy evening snack can squander one’s efforts to eat healthily and let the fitness goals go for a toss.

There are some alarmingly unhealthy snacks that seize our thoughts in-between work are usually extremely high on cholesterol, sodium, sugar, salt and fat! Nobody can deny that they bring comfort to an otherwise ordinary day and are exceptionally delicious and mouthwatering, but all of these also contribute to obesity and other non-communicable diseases like diabetes, cancer, stroke and respiratory diseases. But all kinds and forms of snacking aren't unhealthy.

In fact, snacks in small quantities between meals actually help in increasing metabolic activities, which in turn helps to control one’s weight, improves health and develops immunity. Thus, the right kind of snack can keep the calorie meter in check for you, always.

If one knows how to snack smart, one might even end up looking better and in shape. And who doesn’t want that? As boring as “healthy snacks” might sound, it’d be a real surprise to find out how tasty they are, all the new things you’ll get to try, and how easy they are to tote around with you on the go. And the best part. They are extremely easy to carry and can fit in anywhere be it a laptop bag, purse, workout bag or backpack just as easily as the prepackaged stuff.

Let’s toss the excuses aside and run through some of the healthy, nutritious items that one should be adding to the top of their eating list. Eating these will definitely help you to stay healthy and in shape.

Almonds are a good source of magnesium and rich in vitamin E (an antioxidant) as well as high in protein and fibre. Dried apricots are rich in carotenoids — which may lower the risk of cancers of the throat and lungs — and provide potassium, iron, calcium, silicon, phosphorus and vitamin C. These apricots also boasts of having a greater nutritional value than fresh ones because the nutrient content is so much more concentrated. They have 12 times the iron, seven times the fibre and five times the vitamin A compared gram by the gram to the fresh ones. One of the best ways to try out this healthy snack option is to impale the almonds in the apricots.

Granola is the ideal item that keeps well in the desk drawer as well for a quick snack. Since most store-bought varieties are usually high in content of added sugars and also contain unhealthy vegetable oils that may increase inflammation in your body, it’s best to make your own. And it’s an extremely easy procedure too. Simply combine rolled oats, sunflower seeds, dried cranberries, and cashews in a mixture of melted coconut oil and honey, spread the mix out on a lined baking sheet, and bake for about 40 minutes at low heat. This combination is wholesome, balanced, and rich in complex carbs, fibre, and healthy fats. Plus, the soluble fibre in oats may help lower cholesterol levels and improve heart health.

Get those evenings energised with proteins that come along with the delicious protein bars. It’s very easy to carry and one can keep it in the bag while travelling and can just munch on it anytime one gets an urge to eat. Having a protein bar in the evening is a good idea, especially if one has gone through a tiring day. These bars are usually crispy but chewy and come in various options of fruity flavours. Since these bars are a healthy combination of protein, fibre and whole grain, having one midway through the day can get you energised and prepped up to get you through. One such protein bar is offered at yogabars.in at only Rs. 628 for 6 bars containing 20gm protein in each bar.

A tasty, crunchy snack, hummus is best when you make it yourself using chickpeas. If one does not have the time, one can opt for the reduced fat variety, which will supply vitamin E, manganese and disease-fighting garlic. The choice of raw veggies is clinical and one should use items such as beta-carotene-rich carrot sticks and potassium-rich celery to dip into the hummus. This will help to boost fibre intake.

While seeds are high in fat, it is mostly unsaturated ‘healthy’ fat and since they weigh so little they are good for eating on the move. Seeds are also high in protein and a good source of phytosterols — plant compounds that are believed to reduce cholesterol and enhance immune function. Reportedly, sunflower seeds proved to be the best source of phytosterols as well as being a good source of magnesium, iron, copper, manganese and vitamin E.

Pumpkin seeds are also a good source of zinc, magnesium and manganese. Research also suggests pumpkin seeds might have anti-inflammatory properties that are useful in curbing the symptoms of arthritis. Add a handful of raisins to this mix and you’ll be upping your iron and potassium intake too.

You can also buy Roasted mixed seeds from wonderlandfoods.com at Rs. 109 as the product has 5 in 1 mixed seeds combo, a powerhouse mixture of chia, flax, pumpkin, sunflower and watermelon seeds all in one. It is an excellent blend of proteins, antioxidants and healthy fats that contribute to your overall health, give you a boost of energy. You can sprinkle these seeds in your salads, cereals, or mix them with raisins to prepare a wholesome snack.

Heralded as an all-nutrient fruit, avocados offer close to twenty vitamins and minerals in every serving, including potassium (which helps control blood pressure), lutein and folate (which is crucial for cell repair and during pregnancy). They are an extremely rich source of B, which help fight off disease and infection. They also provide vitamins C and E, plus natural plant chemicals that may help prevent cancer. Avocados are low in sugar. And the fibre they contain helps one feel full for a longer period of time. According to reports, people who added a fresh avocado half to their lunch were less interested in eating during the next three hours.

This is the perfect combination of protein, fat, carbohydrate and lots of fibre. Although peanut butter is high on fat, it’s the unsaturated kind and thus peanuts are a great source of the antioxidant vitamin E. It is also rich in protein so is an especially good choice for vegetarians. And it’s a good source of magnesium too. Ideally, one should spread the peanut butter on rye crispbreads which are low in salt, high in fibre and have a low GI. That way you will avoid an energy high followed by a crash.

The good news is now one can eat chocolate as part of a healthy, balanced diet. Dark chocolate contains close to 70 percent cocoa solids and is a great source of antioxidants - particularly flavonoids, the type that is also found in green tea and red wine. While chocolate is high in fat, it is mainly made up of saturated types — including stearic and palmitic acid — and oleic acid, a monounsaturated fat that is also found in olive oil.

A number of studies have found that chocolate's main fat, stearic acid, has a neutral effect on cholesterol. Dark chocolate has also shown signs that reduce high blood pressure and has twice the amount of magnesium of and more iron than milk chocolate. Plus chocolate always feels good to eat.

Eating both of these together can put two ticks in one’s goal to have a healthy snacking diet. Apples are high in pectin, a soluble fibre. They contain quercetin, an antioxidant that can reduce damage caused by cholesterol and also have a high water content, to help quench thirst. They are even a good source of vitamin C.

Pears are high in potassium and are also a good source of fibre and vitamin C. A study reportedly found that women who consumed three apples or pears a day for three months lost more weight than women who had a similar calorie-controlled diet but did not have the fruit.

A cool and crisp combination of salad can help tide one over until dinner time. Just be sure to pack the favourite mix of salad greens, vegetables, no-sugar-added dried fruits, and nuts into a resealable container. Then pack another with salad dressing or vinaigrette. Remember not to add the dressing until one is ready to eat as this will make your salad soggy. A small garden salad is low in calories and offers plenty of vitamins, minerals, and fibre. Keep eyes on the dressing. If one is trying to lose weight, use a wedge of lemon or try this along with a low-cal ranch or lemon-garlic salad dressing recipe.

Snacking is an effective way to fit in the extra nutrients into the diet and prevent overeating at mealtimes. Approximately an individual gets an average of 24 percent of their calories from snacks. With snacking providing almost one-fourth of the day's calories, choosing healthy options is crucial. Here’s why.

Healthy snacking helps keep the blood sugar levels even, especially if one eats a consistent amount of carbohydrates at each meal or snack. Diabetics can gain the most out of this healthy habit, but is also beneficial for people without diabetes, since large spikes and dips in blood sugar levels may make insulin resistance, obesity, heart disease and high blood pressure more likely over time.

Snacking helps keep one from getting overly hungry in between meals and then overeating at the next meal. So next time if one starts to feel hungry a couple of hours before lunch or dinner, don't try to wait until the meal. Instead, eat a small healthy snack to tide it over. It’s advisable to combine a carbohydrate-rich food like whole grains, fruits or vegetables with protein foods like nuts or dairy products for the most filling snacks.

A healthy snack composed of complex carbohydrates, protein and healthy fats increases one’s energy levels for a longer period of time than compared to sugary snacks. This is because the sugar will cause the blood sugar to spike and then crash, leaving one hungry and lethargic. Complex carbohydrates, on the contrary, are a stable source of energy and including them in a healthy snack helps power through tasks between meals.