Snack Attack: The Dos And Don'ts Of Healthful--And Mindful--Snacking

Here's how to make your desk-side eats and treats work for you--not against you.

Alison Dougherty's job can be hectic. Working on multiple projects at once, often without time for lunch, the Washington, D.C., learning consultant grabs what she can when she can. Most times, that means the food she keeps at her desk.

Dougherty's desk drawers are stocked with everything from protein bars to instant soup mix. She used to keep a stash of Dove chocolates there, replenishing it when it was empty. After one particularly stressful day, though, she ended up eating an entire bag, or about 30 chocolates. "I got pretty sick," says Dougherty, 30. "I had wrappers laying across my desk. It wasn't good."

In Depth: Are You A Smart Snacker?

Recently, Dougherty, who calls herself a "stress eater," decided she needed to get rid of the bars and chocolates and fill her drawers with healthier fare like sugar-free instant oatmeal.

Workplace snacking habits like Dougherty's are played out in offices across the country. We've all done it. When we're stressed, when we're bored and sometimes when we don't even realize it, we'll go for something--anything--within reach. Cookies in the drawer. Heat-and-brown vending machine entrees. The candy jar on the receptionist's desk.

The majority of Americans eat lunch (67%) and snack (61%) at their desks, according to a survey by the American Dietetic Association (ADA), and over one-third eat breakfast there. Especially during these times of instability in the job market, many workers are putting in longer hours, so it's not surprising that the office desk has become the dining table of choice.

Dougherty's oatmeal is better than chocolate, but what's even better? Don't keep food at your desk at all. The biggest snacking mistake people make is keeping food that close at hand, says Dawn Jackson Blatner, a registered dietitian with the ADA and author of The Flexitarian Diet. "It could be whole grain crackers, but if you [eat] mindlessly while you're answering the phone or typing, it can get excessive," says Blatner. "The idea is that it's lazy-access. Having [snacks] there is not healthy."

Keep snacks in the kitchen

Avoiding snacks altogether isn't the answer, though. Snacking can be an important bridge from one meal to the next, and it keeps your energy up. Eating small snacks can also help you avoid overeating at mealtimes. The key is to keep it somewhere--like the office kitchen--where mindless eating won't be a problem. "You have to get up to go to the kitchen, get a plate and bring it back," says Blatner. "You have to make a conscious decision."

Portion it out



Jennifer Smith keeps snacks in the kitchen, but she likes eating crackers at her desk too. While Smith, who works for a New York City marketing and corporate incentives firm, tends not to be an all-day nibbler, "if I'm working intensely and have a pile of crackers sitting there, it could be gone," admits Smith, 32. In order to keep herself from eating the whole box at work, Smith indulges her craving and avoids overeating by bringing a small baggy of the crackers to work.

"Never, ever eat directly out of a large package," says Blatner. Eating from a baggy or even better, putting it on a plate, lets you see what you'll be eating. Your brain will actually register what you're eating and, if anything, seeing that huge mound of Cheez-Its on the plate might just shame you into eating less.

Distinguish snacks from treats

Keeping your goodies in the kitchen and portioning it out is all well and good--if the snack is actually nutritious. Many people don't distinguish between snacks and treats, a difference that's especially easy to ignore given clever snack food marketing. "A 100-calorie pack of Oreos is not a snack. It's a treat," Blatner says. "A snack is nutritious and filling. A treat is not."

Snacks should pack enough nutrition to provide energy so you don't yearn for more and end up overeating. This is not to say treats are banned. Blatner says you should probably only snack about twice a day and can occasionally replace one of those snacks with a treat, making sure to keep both snacks and treats to 150 to 200 calories each.

Rethink your grocery list

So what snacks should you eating? Blatner suggests combinations of produce and protein. For example, apples with cheese, celery with peanut butter or grapes with almonds. Fruit is full of fiber and water that makes you feel more full and satisfied. Protein is more complex and may take longer for the body to absorb, which creates more sustained energy levels than basic sugars. Microwaved popcorn is a good treat-like substitute for people yearning for volume. It is a whole grain that acts as a plain base for sweet toppings like cinnamon and sugar or savory ones like Parmesan cheese.

Candy bars, chocolates and cookies are full of basic sugars. But people who overdo these treats should be more concerned with the lack of nutritional value than with an unsustainable sugar high. The liver actually regulates the amount of glucose that is released into the bloodstream and only puts out what the body needs. So while the body may absorb sugar more quickly than protein once the liver does release it--which may account for what people describe as a "sugar rush"--avoiding sugary snacks makes more nutritional sense.

"It's just crappy food," says Dr. Don C. Rockey, chief of digestive and liver diseases at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. "If you've got a nice car, you don't want to put in gas that's diluted with water. Same with your body."

Make time for lunch

What office eaters need to remember is that snacks are a supplement to meals, not a substitute. But with busy schedules, a proper lunch (or breakfast or dinner, for that matter) can be hard to fit in. Healthy meals often require planning.

Dougherty says she finds herself eating three or four cups of the instant oatmeal a day as her lunch because she's busy and it's convenient. As an alternative, make enough dinner the night before so you can pack some for lunch. Even easier: Buy a pre-made rotisserie chicken and tear some meat on lettuce for instant chicken salad in less than five minutes. For veggie lovers, an easy option is to throw pre-shredded veggies into a pita with hummus, for a healthy, no-fuss sandwich.

Despite her hectic workday, Dougherty says she is trying to improve her office snacking. She started bringing in apples and hummus. She admits, though, she has continued eating the oatmeal packets for lunch. "I'm more of a snacker," she says. "I don't have real meals." Perhaps the only way for Dougherty to get the necessary nutrients? She started buying vitamins--which she keeps at her desk.

In Depth: Are You A Smart Snacker?

More From Forbes.com:

Best Exercises For Your Body Type

The Healthiest Foods On Earth


10 Ways To Improve Your Walking Workout