Are snacks good for you?
There's good research about snacking and it seems most of us are one of two types. We are either sweet snackers or salty snackers. Knowing which you are can help you manage your weight by making sure you have snacks on hand that will be satisfying. This doesn't mean that you need to schedule every one of your snacks, but having the right snack available helps you keep from eating things that you might want to avoid.
Research shows that those who are fruit lovers eat sweet snacks more often and those who are veggie lovers will choose salty or savory snacks. Knowing this lets you choose healthier options so you can keep your cupboard full of better choices that will satisfy you.
Nuts are your best choice if you are a salty/savory snacker. They're filling, stay with you and are full of great monounsaturated fats. I am certainly not a fan of snack foods, but if you are going to choose processed snacks there's good research to show that air can help you eat less. One example is the dense, crispy Cheetos vs. the puffed version. People eat fewer calories when they choose snacks like puffed Cheetos that take up a lot of volume and are less calorie dense. Popcorn is a good example of this. It makes a great snack and you'll find 100 calorie bags of microwave popcorn on the market. These are filling, satisfying, have a lot of fiber and should be in every salty snacker's pantry.
There are a lot of studies to show eating nuts instead of carbohydrate heavy snacks like Cheetos doesn't result in weight gain. This is true even when folks eat more calories by eating nuts. We also know that eating nuts can help improve cholesterol profiles. Keep almonds, peanuts, walnuts, pecans and other nuts on hand for your snacks.
What about sweet snackers? People try to tell me that their weight problems are the result of eating chocolate. When I discuss this with them, it's clear that what they are eating is not very satisfying and they are eating their chocolate impulsively. The secret is to keep small portions of really great quality chocolate in your cupboard. It's also clear that sweet snackers are just as satisfied eating fruit as they are chocolate. In one study, women were asked to eat an apple, a piece of chocolate or nothing. They were given random instructions about when to eat their snack and then asked to record their mood afterwards.
Their mood in the 30 minutes after their snack was essentially the same no matter what they ate. They were equally satisfied with the apple and chocolate (chocolate did have a slight edge). The moods they recorded were much different, however. After 90 minutes the women felt much guiltier for eating the chocolate than the apple. Interestingly, the apple resulted in the same feelings of guilt as eating nothing (which is to say, no feelings of guilt).
If you are a sweet snacker, keep your fridge full of fruit: apples, oranges, pears, grapes. Dried fruit is a great choice as well, and having raisins, apricots, etc. in your cupboard makes sense.
Snacking is important. You need to have something when you're hungry and having the right snack on hand makes this work for you.