Snacking Smart
Take your lifestyle into account when you plan your snacks. Chasing after a toddler requires more energy than sitting behind a desk, so account for it in your snack choices. No snacks should be sugary or fatty starches, such as cookies or doughnuts.
Snacking for Dieters
Even if you are on a strict sugar-free diet, you can still enjoy snacktime. Make your own oatmeal cookies with the sugar substitute Splenda. Eat cutup veggies, such as gorgeous red and yellow peppers, broccoli florets, carrots, celery, and cherry tomatoes. Mix minced veggies and salad dressing with plain low-fat yogurt.
Smoothies are an excellent quick source of energy that also make you feel full. You can make your own frozen sugar-free yogurt treats in ice-cube trays by mixing fruit with plain yogurt and a bit of Splenda. Big smoothies made with natural fruit sugar, protein, fat from milk or yogurt, and some kashi or whey to add long-term energy will keep an athlete going.
Good snacks include things like hardboiled eggs, sugar-free cereal bars, fresh and dried fruits, cheese sandwiches on whole-wheat bread, and small sandwiches of roast beef and tomato on thinly sliced whole-grain bread.
Essential
Eating is often an unconscious reaction to boredom. Learn to recognize whether your hunger pangs are coming from your stomach or your brain. If your stomach is satisfied, chew on some sugar-free gum and let the flavors distract your brain. To avoid the temptation of the vending machine, always carry some sugar-free snacks, such as nuts or dried fruit, for those inevitable occasions when you are truly hungry.
Sugar-Free Snacks
Sugar-free snacks help you to handle your hunger when you are in the mood for something sweet. Try some sugar-free candies, cakes, and cookies available in the market. Keep fresh fruits and vegetables nearby or make some of the sugar-free quick breads from the recipes in this book and have a slice with a bit of cream cheese. Herbal teas are warm and soothing and don't have added calories.
Sugar Substitutes
The sugar substitute market has expanded over the years. There are many sugar substitutes. Total and Sweet 'n Low come in small packets, suitable for a cup of tea, coffee, or cocoa. Splenda and DiabetiSweet can be used in cooking as well as in drinks. It's brown version has no real sugar in it. However, Splenda also has a product for baking and a brown sugar substitute. These are not recommended for diabetics because they are half white or brown sugar and half Splenda.
Fact
Sugar substitutes add sweetness to foods without raising the body's blood sugar levels. They have no nutritional value themselves, but they do not have the calories of table sugar. There have been concerns about the safety of artificial sweeteners, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration stands by its approval of these substances.
However, they are valuable for non-diabetics who want to make an occasional treat. Sugar substitutes do not work so well when used in baking. Real sugar adds moisture, texture, and flavor to baked foods, which most sugar substitutes cannot duplicate.
