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Article Directory -
Weight Loss
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Written by Wilhelm Greffrath
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Tuesday, 16 June 2009 20:58 |
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Many people are of the opinion that snacking will torpedo any weight loss program. The reality is that snacking is not all that detrimental to attempts to lose weight, in fact, snacking will not only help you keep your appetite under control: it can help you lose weight too.
Before you learn how snacking can be beneficial, it would be useful to understand the workings behind the cravings for a snack. Apart form the fact that you might be quite hungry, cravings also has something to do with your blood sugar. When your brain detects that your blood sugar is running low it sends the message to eat something. The moment you eat something, your blood sugar level rises again and the craving goes away. The time it takes for the craving to go away and stay away depends on what you eat. When you snack on things that contain a lot of refined sugars like chocolates or fruit, your blood sugar will rise quickly. However, refined sugars also get burned up quickly which means your craving will return just as fast. Read on for better examples of healthy snacks.
How can snacking be a good thing?
The norm for most people is to have a meal three times per day. This is perfectly fine but the time one has to wait between meals can be too long for some to endure. Once they make it to the next meal a raging appetite overrules all sensibility and gluttony prevails. This is where sensible snacking comes in. A snack in between meals can help you keep your appetite under control and keep you energized in between meals. You need something to keep you satisfied for long periods of time. The answer is to snack on things that are not purely carbohydrates but with protein and fibre too. The protein and fibre will keep you satisfied much longer and keep your appetite under control for much longer as opposed to the brief effect of carbohydrates.
Here are some good examples of healthy food snacks;
-Nuts
-Tuna sandwich
-Air popped popcorn (minus the butter, sorry)
-Pickles
-Hard boiled eggs
-Protein bars
-Broccoli florets
-Chicken breasts
-Peanut butter
Then to sum up, the benefits of snacking:
-Additional nutrients and energy. Especially when you don't have time for a
proper sit down meal
-Hunger control
-Helps keep your blood sugar level even
-Prevent over eating. A little snack mid-morning can prevent you from going for a second portion
As you can see, snacking can be a powerful ally in the battle against the bulge. Just use the above guideline to select the right snack for you and you will survive from meal to meal. Just think more protein and less carbs.
Wilhelm Greffrath is a community pharmacist in South Africa that has a grievance with bombastic medical explanations for simple things. Pick up your Free Report at http://www.project-33.com/wlfreereport.html to learn about the one fact you need to understand to lose successfully loose weight.
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