Thursday, May 23, 2013

EE2



A Non-Snacker’s Manifesto
     Growing up, I was always taught that three meals a day that incorporated all the essential food groups, along with adequate exercise, was the best way to maintain a healthy weight or help one loose some extra undesired pounds. However, as I got into high school and took ninth grade health, my teacher explained that nowadays, this is not the case. “Nowadays eating habits are moving away from eating three substantial meals a day to eating smaller amounts of food more frequently(snacking)” (Chaplin & Smith). More people are snacking in between meals, or completely altering their eating habits and having five snacks per day rather than three meals and a couple snacks in between. I am more of a three meals per day type of person myself, for a multitude of reasons. The main reasons I do not snack is because most of my snacks are not healthy (chips and cheese dip, Pop Tarts, etc.), and as a broke college student, snacks are not a top priority for spending money. As I was going through the class food logs, there was a number of people who had different snacks incorporated into their days. With snacking becoming a prevalent occurrence in many people’s lives, one has to wonder if snacking really is healthier for you, if it is worse, or if it makes no difference at all.
     When I was a young girl, I remember waking up from naps or coming home from school and my grandmother giving me juice and cookies, a tangerine, or some sort of small snack to hold me over until dinner time. As I got older and progressed into middle school and high school, nap time became frowned upon more and more, and the snack times subsided. I was told snacking would make me fat and it was better for me to have three “square meals” per day, but constantly wondered how my cousins could still snack all they wanted and maintain healthy weights. According to experts at the Institute of Food Technologists 2001 Annual Meeting and Food Expo in New Orleans, weight gain resulting from snacking “depends both on the snacker and his or her chosen snack” (Mann). Some people gain weight faster and easier than others, especially if their idea of a snack is something heavy in calories or more like another meal. Richard D. Mattes, a professor of food and nutrition at Purdue University says, “Snacks are more of an eating event or fourth meal for some.” He goes on to note that, “Part of the problem is that there is not a good definition of what constitutes a snack.... For example, if the first thing you put in your mouth is a granola bar at 10 a.m., is it a snack or a meal?” (Mann) People today also spend more time snacking than years previous. From about 15 minutes a day in 2006 to 30 minutes in 2008 and spending “about 85 minutes a day drinking our snacks,” snacking now includes drinking beverages like coffee or sugary sodas, and is “on its way to becoming a national pastime” (Mann). But is it bad for every person, and will it lead to making people gain weight or other health problems?
     When I entered high school, I began to make new friends who transferred from other districts. A few of those friends had conditions such as diabetes or hypoglycemia, and there was not a single time I saw them without some sort of snack. From a small bag of Cheetos to an apple or a cheese stick, they constantly had food with them and never gained a pound. So why was it that when my other friends or I snacked and would gain weight? Turns out, only about 50 percent of people need to snack, according to an article in the Huffington Post. For those who have conditions that require them to eat periodically through the day, snacking is a logical way to make sure their blood sugar levels don’t go berserk. For those of us who just like to eat in between meals, this is not always the case. 
     In a study done to see what different definitions and perceptions people had about snacking based on age, gender, etc., researchers found that a person’s definition of “snack” and “meal” determined if he or she chose healthier snack options and maintained a healthy weight (Chaplin & Smith). Many of my friends who were snacking regularly would have apple slices with peanut butter, a cheese stick or granola bar of some sort, or a bag of chips as a last resort if they forgot to bring foods rich in proteins, which helps slow the release of sugar into the blood, preventing an insulin spike which causes an energy crash, sending one “searching for more food to nibble on” (Unknown). Their definition of a snack was not calorie-heavy products or food they would normally eat as a meal. Rather, they chose to snack on foods that were not only healthy, but rich in proteins or had some sort of nutritional value to carry them on until their next meal.
     When I was younger, my snacks consisted of sugary cookies and juices. Now that I am older and more aware of the repercussions eating such foods has on my body, I tend to eat healthier, especially on the rare occasions when I snack, though my choices are still not the best (small bag of chips, some crackers or something I can grab and go with). The National Diet and Nutrition Survey in the United Kingdom measuring the types and quantities of food consumed by over one thousand adults aged 19-64 between 2000 and 2001. The survey found that younger adults 19-24 years old “were more likely to consume chips, savory snacks and soft drinks and less likely to eat daily portions of fruit and vegetables, wholegrain and high fibre cereals and oil rich fish” (Anderson). However, the average number of times a person would snack during a day is the same for every age group (Chaplin & Smith). These findings are evident in my family, with my grandparents snacking much more often than I do throughout a day, but on healthier foods like apples, carrots, or celery. 
     When I was in middle school health class, there was an entire unit dedicated to healthy eating and exercise. We learned about what food groups we should be getting a lot of and which we should stray away from. The lovely food pyramid made an appearance a few times as well, and we had to memorize what groups were recommended to eat more of than others for the exam. Just a few short years later when I entered high school, the food pyramid changed again and our health class had to memorize that one. So many experts and programs have come out to tell us what is best for our diets, what we should eat as a treat and what should be on our plates for nearly every meal, it is hard to remember what and how we should be feeding our bodies nowadays. Protein is recommended since it helps prevent the feeling of being hungry, but fruits and veggies should not be skimped out on, as they provide “hydration, fiber and nutrients to between-meal nibbles” (Unknown). There are also recommendations for how to eat, such as avoiding sitting down with a bag of chips or eating while working or watching television because you are more likely to forget how much you’ve eaten and keep stuffing your face. 
     When I first heard about snacking periodically throughout the day potentially being more healthy than eating three meals per day and nothing in between them, there were multiple reasons people were telling me it was more beneficial. Reasons such as it keeps one from eating more than they should at their next meal, it keeps one more full longer, or it makes one less stressed and more energized were all spouted off, but I was skeptical and stuck to my three meals. In reality, none of these statements are completely true. Depending on the person and what their definitions of a snack and a meal are will have a lot to do with his or her weight, along with what snack options they choose (Chaplin & Smith). Furthermore, depending on what foods one consumes as his or her snack will determine if snacking really does keep one more full longer, along with where one is snacking. If one is standing at the fridge, for example, he or she is more likely to consume more food than if the alternative of pouring some chips into a small bowl and being done when the bowl was empty were taken (Mann). Finally, in a study conducted to determine if there are any mental health or cognitive performance benefits when it comes to snacking, no such data was found that snacking provided such benefits. Out of 126 participants, those who never snacked or only did so once a week were more likely to be depressed than those who snacked everyday, but when it came to cognitive tests, those who rarely or never snacked scored better than those who snacked everyday (Smith). 
     So is snacking really better for us, or is it worse? The answer is complicated. Depending on the person and what he or she chooses to eat plays an important factor in one’s health concerning snacking, along with if the person has a condition that requires him or her to snack periodically throughout the day. It is not necessarily beneficial for us to snack, unless we choose wisely and eat our proteins, but not forget the fruits and vegetables as well (Mann). Also consider if snacking makes you choose healthier options for your next meal, or if you find yourself eating the same things, and the same amounts. If this is the case, most likely snacking is not for you and is just “an added source of calories” (Unknown). If not snacking seems to make you feel down or depressed for any reasons, you could consider trying it for a while, but do not expect to see drastic differences in your mood, nor your ability to spot objects faster, as that is not likely to occur (Smith). 
     In the end, it depends on who you are, how you eat, and what you eat when you snack. I sometimes consider crossing over to “team-snackers,” but when I consider all the factors that one should consider when thinking if snacking is right for them, I do not qualify. My snacks tend to be more like small meals and hardly ever have nutritional value, not to mention I am one of those “bottomless pit” eaters who will take a bag of chips with me to the living room and return to the kitchen to throw the bag away. I will stick to my three meals per day and no snacking in between, though on the rare occasions I do snack, I will attempt to lean more toward the healthier options rather than eat a bag of Cheetos or an entire row of Oreos.














Works Cited
Anderson, Annie S. "Snacking Habits in Adults." Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics 16.1 (2003): 1-2. Print.
Chaplin, K., & Smith, A. P. (2011). Definitions and perceptions of snacking. Current Topics in Nutraceuticals Research, 9(1), 53-59. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/ docview/919438987?accountid=14608
Smith, Andrew P. "Snacking Habit, Mental Health, and Cognitive Performance." Current Topics in Nutraceuticals Research 9.1 (2011): 47-51. ProQuest. Web. 14 May 2013.
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