List of Healthy Snacks

Are putting on weight due to snacking? We all know that eating at odd hours leads to weight gain. But how do you deal with hunger pangs without starving yourself. To answer one of the most common dilemmas of how to control snacking we have put together a list of healthy snacks alongside some not so healthy snacks. This is done to explain why you should be eating this and not that.

Before we move on to the healthy vs unhealthy snack list you need to understand snacks are just fillers or small bites. Most people eat snacks like a meal and thats where the problem starts. When one samosa becomes two or one sandwich becomes two sandwiches.

To elaborate a little bit more here are some points to note

While snacking eat slowly and enjoy every bite that you eat. Eating slowly makes you chew the food properly and eat less also. This helps you in managing portion and not over eating.

Don’t snack on empty calories even though you can manage the portion because it will add no nutrition and only calories.

You could choose low fat dairy, eggs, seeds and nuts, fruits and veggies as a snacking option.

Lets further explain it with an example on how to control your calories better if you are on a weight loss routine. A man weighing 80 kgs and 175 cms would approximately require 2000 calories in a single day. To break it further he would have a daily quota  of 250 calories for 2 snacks in a day. While a women weighing 50 kg and 5 feet 2 inches would require approximately 1400 calories in a day and 175 calories each for snacking twice in a day. This means you can divide your snack for once during mid morning and once in the routine evening. But remember snacking includes your tea/coffee/coke/lemonade etc! Read more

Guavas build immunity

Along with apples, another delicious and nutritious winter fruit is the guava. Its high in fiber, but its Vitamin C content is what is out of the ordinary. Orange is the fruit synonymous with Vitamin C- but a guava contains 5 times the amount of vitamin C as an orange.

Its also high in potassium, which helps to reduce blood pressure. Guava is among the few fruits that provide calcium, iron and carbohydrates (good carbs, since they are not quick dissolving).

So dig in to those guavas!

Apples reduce risk of cancer, heart disease

As the Indian summer is going away, apples are in season (as is running- you do know about the Delhi Half Marathon right?). Apples are delicious fruits and they provide a whole lot of nutrition. We’ve all heard that apples are good for you. Lets find out how.

First, they’re loaded with fiber- both soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber helps to reduce your bad cholesterol, and the insoluble fiber keeps you regular. The fiber keeps you feeling full for longer, so apples are a great snack for people trying to lose weight.

Besides that, they provide a rich dose of vitamin C, which boosts the body’s immune system. Apples are also loaded with flavanoids and antioxidants that reduce free radical damage in your body (free radical damage can cause premature aging of skin, cancer, etc). Multiple studies have linked regular apple consumption to lowering heart risk disease and cancer.

Maybe there is truth to the old adage- an apple a day, keeps the doctor away.

Health Benefits of Almonds

Almonds or rather nuts in general get a bad name because they have high fat content, but there are plenty health benefits of almonds. We’ll tell you about these benefits.

There are two kinds of fat- saturated (Bad) and unsaturated (Good) fat. And almonds are high in unsaturated fats, the same type of healthy fats found in olive oil. Almonds are packed with mono-unsaturated fats. A recent study at the University of Toronto led to the discovery that eating about an ounce of almonds per day can decrease LDL cholesterol by as much as 20 percent over time. Incredibly, this decrease is comparable to results from medication.

Besides this, almonds pack a punch of protein. Protein takes longer to digest, so it keeps you satisfied for longer. Thus reducing those hunger pangs, while feeding those muscles of yours.

Almonds also contain calcium, Vitamin E, Magnesium, Potassium, Magnesium, and last but not the least, antioxidants.

In a recent study published in the International Journal of ORMD, adults who were put on a low calorie diet enriched with almonds lost more weight, lost more fat, reduced more waistline inches than those who did not have almond enriched diets. (Both diets had equal calorie values)

You can eat almonds raw, roasted, or chop them up toss them into dessert or yogurt. Try to eat them with the skin, since that contains nutrition too. Benefits of almonds are plenty, but they’re loaded with fat and thus calories, so control your portions. Have a handful for that 4 p.m. craving, with a fruit. They’ll keep you going for longer without feeling hungry, reducing your snacking on unhealthy food, thus reducing your risk of gaining weight from it.

Almonds have low GI (Glycemic Index) value, so when you include them in your diet, your overall blood sugar rises up less than without almonds.

We could go on about almonds, but the point is made. Go nuts!

Note, that the healthiest almonds are the regular crispy almonds. The roasted, salted or sugar coated almonds only reduce the health benefits of almonds.

Health Benefits of Yogurt

Milk and Yogurt (curd) are the essential part of the recommended “healthy Indian diet”. We’ve all heard about the calcium in milk and yogurt and how it makes our bones stronger, but there are so many health benefits of Yogurt than having it only as a rich source of calcium. Can yogurt help you lose belly fat?

Yes, latest research shows that yogurt can even help you lose weight. The calcium in yogurt not only helps to make your bone stronger. A study at University of Tennessee found that participants who consumed 3 daily servings of fat free yogurt on a 12 week basis gained less fat around their mid-section than those who didn’t consumed dairy products containing less calcium. The mineral appears to help curb production of the stress hormone cortisol, which has been linked to the accumulation of abdominal fat.

Yogurt provides essential carbohydrates and a punch of protein. The carbohydrates are good since they provide you the energy you need to get through the day. And the protein is good for building those muscle and their regular functioning. Yogurt with fruits makes for a great post workout meal.

It’s a good source of your daily vitamin needs like vitamins B6 and B12. The Health benefits of Yogurt don’t stop here, it is also a good source of Potassium. Studies have shown that potassium consumption helps with reducing hypertension and increase muscle retention. The bacterial cultures in yogurt help to keep you regular.

There are plenty of ways to consume yogurt – If you don’t like plain yogurt, then you can always throw in some fruits and nuts or try low calories yogurt smoothies.