By Lucy Danziger
Do you feel a snack attack coming on? You've got company. Most Americans get 26 percent of their calories at times other than breakfast, lunch and dinner, according to government data. I'm definitely in that camp. Eating every few hours helps keep blood sugar stable, curbs hunger and prevents overeating later in the day, so I make a point of having healthy nibbles like fruit, nuts or trail mix in my office at all times (of course I share them with my coworkers, making me very popular midafternoon). It also makes me a nicer, saner person when I don't have to work through the noise of my stomach growling!
Still, I know that too much extracurricular noshing on empty calories may cause weight gain. According to the USDA, if you're not trying to shed any weight, you can "spend" about 265 calories a day on snacks. Trying to drop a few pounds? Make your snacks total about 160 calories. To satisfy any between-meal craving (and lose weight), try a few of the healthy munchies below.
Vegetarian? Try these meat-free munchies.
Want a savory snack?
5 olives (any kind), 45 calories
1 small Martin's pretzel, 50 calories
2 oz Applegate Honey and Maple Turkey Breast wrapped around 2 bread-and-butter pickles, 80 calories
1/4 cup hummus and 3 carrot sticks, 80 calories
1 Laughing Cow Light Swiss Original wedge, 3 pieces Kavli Crispy Thin, 85 calories
1 oz buffalo mozzarella, 1/2 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, 94 calories
1 cup unshelled edamame, 120 calories
50 Eden's Vegetable Chips, 130 calories
One 1-oz package of Planters NUT-trition almonds, 130 calories
15 Terra Blues Potato Chips, 130 calories
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds in shell, 143 calories
2 pieces (30 grams) prosciutto, 4 dried figs, 154 calories
Prefer sweets?
3 Hershey's Kisses Brand Special Dark Chocolate, 60 calories
1 package Original Apple Nature Valley Fruit Crisps, 50 calories
1 Late July Organic Dark Chocolate Sandwich Cookie, 50 calories
1 Hostess 100 Calorie Pack: Chocolate Cupcake, 100 calories
30 plain M&M's, 100 calories (one Fun Size packet)
1 package Back to Nature Honey Graham Sticks, 120 calories
12 gummi bears, 120 calories
1/2 banana rolled in 1 tbsp frozen semisweet chocolate chips, 123 calories
1/3 cup dried fruit, 134 calories
3 Oreos, 160 calories
1 McDonald’s Fruit 'n Yogurt Parfait, 160 calories
Making just one tiny change (like keeping healthy snacks on hand) can make a huge difference. For more small tweaks that can really add up, try a Tip-a-Day Makeover.