5 Ways to Stop Snacking
Updated: Aug. 06, 2019It’s easy to pack on extra pounds when you’re compulsively munching between meals. Here are five simple strategies that can curb unhealthy cravings, and ultimately, help you stop snacking.
Don’t Impulse-Buy Snacks
No stopping at the bakery for a sugary pastry. No sweets or chocolates from the newsstand on the way to work. No pizza slice from your local pizzeria. This type of compulsive, unhealthy eating causes many of our weight problems.
Turn to Soup for Comfort
When you crave comfort food, heat up a large bowl of soup made with lots of vegetables and beans. It’s flavourful, hearty, high in nutrition and low in fat.
Nibble on Shelled Nuts
The effort to crack the shells and extract the nut without breaking it is highly therapeutic and distracting. In addition, nuts are very healthy snacks-in moderation, of course. Choose walnuts, almonds, pecans, Brazil nuts or hazelnuts. Peanuts and pistachios are too quick to open so you can easily overindulge.
Toss Out Low-Nutrition Snacks
Do an audit of your refrigerator and pantry and toss the ice cream, sweets, crisps, biscuits, donuts, cake and any other salty or sugary snacks that you munch on between meals. These are foods that we eat compulsively and that make us overweight. From now on, make a conscious decision to eat these foods only when offered them at a special event.
Be a Fussy Eater
Parents complain about children who are fussy eaters-but you’re not a child, and you owe it to yourself to be particular about what goes onto (and comes off of!) your plate. As a rule of thumb, if it doesn’t look good for you, don’t eat it. And take your time while you’re at it: There are ample studies that associate eating quickly with weight gain.
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