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Westend61\/Getty Images<\/p>\n <\/span> \nWhen it comes to snacking, new research suggests what you eat and when you eat may have the most impact on your heart and metabolic health.\n<\/p>\n \nThe new study, presented Monday at NUTRITION 2023, the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition, examined the snacking habits of more than 1,000 people in order to determine how snacking affects health, and whether quality, quantity, frequency, or timing made any difference.\n<\/p>\n \n\u201cWe [were] interested in not only what you eat, but also how you eat,\u201d study lead author, Kate Bermingham, PhD, post-doctoral research assistant at King\u2019s College London, told Health<\/em>.\n<\/p>\n \n\u201cSnacking is a common dietary behavior and many people ask us whether they should be snacking or not.\u201d Bermingham added. \u201cOur research question was, \u2018Is what you are snacking on more important than how frequently you snack?\u2019\u201d\n<\/p>\n \nSnacking has become part of everyday life for most Americans and many Europeans. According to 2023 research in the journal Nutrients<\/em>, more than 90% of U.S. adults report eating one or more snacks on any given day, with an average of 1.2\u20133 snacking occasions per day.<\/span> And all that snacking adds up to extra calories as well as impactful nutrients like sodium, saturated fat, and added sugars.\n<\/p>\n \nHere\u2019s what to know about the health effects of those in-between meals, and how to create a snack\u2014and snacking routine\u2014that provides the most benefit.\n<\/p>\n 15 Healthy Snacks to Support Gut Health <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span> <\/p>\n \nFor the new research, which is still considered preliminary, Bermingham and her colleagues looked at data from the ZOE Predict study, an ongoing, in-depth nutritional research project in the U.K.\n<\/p>\n \nUsing information on just over 1,000 subjects, 95% of whom described themselves as snackers, the team analyzed their dietary patterns over 2\u20134 days. Snacks were given a quality score based on their healthfulness (or lack thereof).\n<\/p>\n \n\u201cAn example of a high-quality snack is nuts and seeds or fruits,\u201d Bermingham said. \u201cAn unhealthful, highly processed snack included candy or cookies.\u201d Researchers also took stock of the timing of people\u2019s snacks, identifying late-night snacks as foods eaten after 9 P.M.\n<\/p>\n \nFrom there, the team looked at various measures of subjects\u2019 health, including weight, blood glucose, insulin, and blood lipids, to see how they correlated with snack quantity, quality, and timing.\n<\/p>\n \nPeople who ate high-quality snacks were more likely to have healthier triglycerides and blood sugar levels than those who ate highly processed snacks. Additionally, those who ate their snacks later in the evening had unfavorable blood sugar and triglyceride levels, compared with daytime snackers. Snack quantity and frequency did not appear to adversely affect health outcomes nearly as much as snack quality.\n<\/p>\n \nAccording to Bermingham, these conclusions offer promise for viewing snacks as a pathway toward better health. \u201cThe study concluded\u00a0snacking behavior may be a key dietary target to improve risk factors for diet-related diseases, and\u00a0healthy snacking earlier in the day can be part of a healthy lifestyle,\u201d she said.\n<\/p>\n <\/span> <\/p>\n \nIt\u2019s not surprising that \u201chigh-quality\u201d foods (i.e. those with ample nutrients) would be linked to improved health indicators like lower blood sugar and blood lipids.\n<\/p>\n \n\u201cHigh-quality snacks that provide whole grain carbohydrate, protein, and\/or healthy fat can help stabilize blood sugar levels and thereby help to control diabetes and triglyceride levels,\u201d Bonnie Taub-Dix, RDN, creator of BetterThanDieting.com and author of Read It Before You Eat It\u2014Taking You from Label to Table <\/em>told Health<\/em>.\n<\/p>\n \nHowever, the study\u2019s finding that late-night snacking negatively impacted measures of health is a bit more noteworthy. It adds to previous research with similar conclusions about late-night eating. A 2022 study published in Cell Metabolism<\/em> showed that late eating increased daytime hunger and decreased daytime energy expenditure, ultimately increasing obesity risk.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \nThe \u201cwhy\u201d behind these findings likely has to do with the quality of snacks people tend to choose at night.\n<\/p>\n \n\u201cMany people snack after dinner and into the night (before bed) out of boredom or habit, not hunger,\u201d Anne Danahy, MS, RDN, of Craving Something Healthy, told Health<\/em>. \u201cFor many, a nighttime snack is a bag of chips or a bowl of ice cream. Those provide empty calories that don\u2019t nourish your body. Snacking on those types of foods contributes to weight gain and may raise blood sugar and cholesterol.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \nAlso intriguing from the King\u2019s College study is the fact that the quantity of snacks appeared to be less important for health than their quality.\n<\/p>\n \nAccording to Taub-Dix, this might be explained by the relatively short window of time observed in the study. \u201cSnack\u00a0quantity<\/em>\u00a0could have an impact on weight and digestion in the big picture, whereas snack\u00a0quality<\/em>\u00a0could impact blood sugar levels soon after the snack is consumed, especially if the snack is laden with added sugar without any protein or fat to help slow up digestion,\u201d she explained.\n<\/p>\n Healthy High Protein Snacks That Are Low in Calories<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span> <\/p>\n \nOur national snacking habit is likely here to stay\u2014so for better health, how can you make the best eating choices between meals?\n<\/p>\n \n\u201cI look at snacks as mini-meals,\u201d said Taub-Dix. \u201cWe are snacking more than ever, so it\u2019s best to choose snacks with benefits. In other words, pick those that contain the trifecta of a combo of protein, carbohydrate, and healthy fat.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \nDanahy agrees that a balance of the three macronutrients is key for healthy munching. Some of her top recommendations for snacks with ideal amounts of nutrients include:\n<\/p>\n \nFinally, as for whether you should kick a nighttime snacking habit, Danahy\u2019s answer is \u201cmaybe.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \n\u201cFirst, ask yourself if you need a night-time snack," she said. "Most people don\u2019t\u2014unless dinner is very early or very light. If hunger keeps you awake at night, or you wake up in the middle of the night starving, then plan a healthy snack that sustains you, or try to eat dinner a little later."\n<\/p>\n \nCutting back on late-night noshing might yield other benefits, too, like better sleep and lower risk of heartburn. Then again, if you have a health condition that requires more frequent eating (such as diabetes, hypoglycemia, or requiring medication that must be taken with food), it\u2019s always best to follow your doctor\u2019s guidance on snack timing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" New preliminary research shows what you eat and when you eat has the greatest impact on heart and metabolic health when it comes to snacking. High-quality snacks were linked to healthier triglycerides and blood sugar levels than highly-processed snacks. Additionally, late-night snacking was linked to unfavorable blood sugar and triglyceride levels, compared to daytime snacking. 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\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Quality and Timing of Snacks Matter Most <\/span> <\/h2>\n
Why Snack Quality and Timing Matter for Health <\/span> <\/h2>\n
Choosing the Best Snacks\u2014And When to Eat Them <\/span> <\/h2>\n
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