[Esha]

I need some help in terms of snacking. I am unsure on what to snack on, that won't affect my diet too much. so far, I have been snacking on nuts but in moderation. Mostly walnuts, pecans and cashews. Are these nuts healthy? or am i supposed to stay away from nuts altogether? rather confused. do you have any snack suggestions? please do share. i am big on snacking, so i need something healthy/guilt free.

thanks.

[JOLINA]

I try to make all my food work for me in a healthy way...and that includes snacks.
I snack on 5 or 6 cashew nuts because they help fight cavities and gingivitis.

And I also chew a couple of almonds after every meal because they get rid of acid indigestion. They work better than Tums.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

[Lnm130]

I had no idea that cashews fight cavaties and gingivitis!! That's pretty cool!

[ERHR]

It depends on what kind of diet philosophy you ascribe to whether or not you think nuts are a good idea. They are high-calorie, high-fat obviously, but also very filling and are mostly protein and fiber. Personally I do snack on nuts, usually walnuts, but raw almonds are very healthy too. I am on a carb-restricted diet so my snacks are protein-heavy - like turkey sausage, a turkey hot dog, or cottage cheese.

[marianne78]

Originally Posted by Lnm130

I had no idea that cashews fight cavaties and gingivitis!! That's pretty cool!

I too didn't know that cashews help fight cavities. This is cool stuff.

As for snacks, it probably depends on what eating plan you have. For me, I often go for fruit or salt-free crackers.

[kaw]

Raw cauliflower and celery are my snack staples. Both have trivial calories, especially net of fiber, and they satisfy my need for crunchie munchies. Raw kohlrabi is good, too, and sliced thin is an excellent vehicle for salsa.

I'd be careful of the nuts. Yeah, everything in moderation if that's your thing, but it doesn't take many to add up to a substantial number of calories. Raw almonds, my favorite, are about 7 calories per nut. Cashews are a shade more.

[Athenacapella]

Fat isn't the enemy - it's sugar. How about avocado and chicken or shrimp. Yum.

[amandie]

celery, tomatoes (any kind), carrots and/or green onions/scallions with one of the following- homemade ranch dressing, cucumber salsa (sometimes with diced avocados), laughing cow garlic herb flavored cheese.

1 cup frozen grapes (red tastes better than white to me.)

1/2 cup applesauce with cinnamon (sometimes I have 1 cup, only 100 calories.)

1 cup yogurt w/ fruit.

1/4 cup homemade trail mix with your preferred nuts, dried fruit and etc.

Last one- cinnamon/sweetened natural almonds- there are so many recipes online with sugar free options. I've done it with baking splenda- worked very well!

[Changergirl]

I love celery and carrots. I usually mix fat free cream cheese and salsa to dip them into.

I'm going to agree with amandie on the frozen grapes, I thought it was strange when I first heard about it but they're delicious and take longer to eat than fresh ones.

Lastly sugar free jello, I'm about to have some now. There's almost no nutritional value but its tasty!

[katy trail]

i have a hard time stopping at just a few almonds or other types of nuts. pistaschios are awesome too. shelled nuts of any type take longer to eat. unsalted raw almonds are less addictive. i couldn't eat them at first, bought by mistake, lol. but tried them and i can stop at a hand full.

most of the time i reach for some type of produce. fresh, frozen whatever we have. oranges or clemintines are especially refreshing. lots of traditional fruits/veggies. i eat lots of raw unpeeled carrots. no prep involved, super fast. almost no calories.

i also love hummus. no one has mentioned that. it's a bean dip. there's a million variations. the original version is chick peas, olive oil, cumin, lemon juice with optional um i forgot what it's called. it's a white paste. anyway, i've made it with less or no oil, and it's still really good. you can make it with other types of beans, spices, herbs. yum-o! i can eat it by the bowl full. great on a sandwich too.

[indiblue]

Esha I"m a huge huge snacker too! A grazer to be exact... I just graze allll day long. Not necessarily a bad thing, as long as I'm not grazing solely on ice cream and cake...

I'm a volume snacker so like katy trail said I can't just stop with a small handful of nuts. I need things I can eat a lot of. My favorite low-calorie snack foods:
- Frozen banana "ice cream" (bananas frozen, chopped, and blended until creamy with a splash of milk, then refrozen. Tastes like frozen yogurt!)
- Popcorn with half a tablespoon of butter and some seasoned salt
- Pomegranate seeds
- Grapes
- Whole wheat pita chips (I make my own- just whole wheat and water, but I'm sure you can buy them) with hummus
- Fat free yogurt and honey
- Vietnamese spring rolls (fresh veggies wrapped in rice paper) with fat-free sweet chili sauce.
- Homemade lo-fat spinach dip (spinach, yogurt, whatever spices/seasonings you want) with vegetable dippers.
- Whole wheat pita chips OR vegetable dippers with homemade salsa (tomatoes, onion, cilantro, lemon juice, salt).
- Chai tea or coffee with milk and one spoonful of brown sugar (kills the sweet craving without preservatives, salt, etc)
- Nori (seaweed, available at local Asian grocery stores)

A couple of the snacks I listed are a little labor intensive to make, but I know if I don't have fresh healthy snacks around I'll stuff myself with Nutella by the spoonful. Plus, cooking fresh delicious food in the evenings to keep around for the rest of the week burns more calories than sitting in front of the TV

[pinkbunnys18]

I snack on fruit. mostly dryied fruit that I have made. Or those special K crackers. There kinda small, but 17 of them is only like 170 cal.

[joyfulloser]

At only 139 calories, 3.2g protein, 2g fat, 107mg sodium, 2.1g fiber, my Pumpkin Raisin Flax Muffins make the perfect treat!

Here's the recipe for anyone interested! http://caloriecount.about.com/pumpki...recipe-r488704

[Esha]

Thanks everyone for the great advice and suggestions

[desiresdestiny]

cottage cheese
fiber one bars