Sweet or salty snacks? Nutritionist tells what is healthier for you
What snacks are good for health (photo: Freepik)
Choosing between salty and sweet snacks can affect your health in different ways. Excess salt increases blood pressure, while sugar contributes to weight gain and fluctuations in blood glucose levels, reports Real simple. What snacks should you choose to avoid harming your body?
Sweet snacks
When it comes to sugary snacks, it can be hard to choose healthy options at the grocery store.These include packaged cookies, cakes, pastries, candy, sugary drinks, ice cream, and chocolate.
Nutritionist Stefania Militano said that although these foods are delicious, they are full of unhealthy ingredients.
High-sugar snacks can cause energy crashes and make you feel lethargic. Additionally, added sugar is known to promote inflammation in the body,impairing the immune system and increasing the risk of chronic disease.
Sugar also affects metabolic health, contributing to a sharp rise in blood sugar and insulin resistance.
In addition, packaged pastries and sugary snacks often contain trans fats and excess saturated fat, which can promote inflammation and affect heart health.
This is due to the ability of both of these fats to raise cholesterol levels.
In addition, ultra-processed sugary snacks are often full of mystery ingredients, including additives and preservatives.
Healthier sugary snacks should ideally be high in fiber, protein, unsaturated fat, and micronutrients such as vitamins, minerals, and plant compounds to promote post-meal satiety as well as gut, heart, muscle, bone, and immune health. These nutrients can be found in foods such as whole grains, nuts, seeds, legumes, low-fat dairy products, and fruits.
Salty snacks
The most popular salty snacks include chips, crackers, and processed meats, which are not the best option for health either.
Too many salty snacks can negatively affect blood pressure and heart health. Salty snacks can also contain added sugar, saturated fat, trans fat, additives, and preservatives.
White or refined carbohydrates have been stripped of the fiber and micronutrients found in whole grains and, in turn, act very similarly to added sugars in how they are metabolized. This means that they can spike your blood sugar and make you feel hungry shortly after eating.
What is healthier for you
One category of snacks can technically be considered a healthier choice, namely salty foods.
That's because even the healthiest sugary snacks contain some form of sugar that can spike blood sugar levels.
You may also be interested in 5 outdated food trends you shouldn't believe.
This material is for informational purposes only and should not be used for medical diagnosis or self-treatment. Our goal is to provide readers with accurate information about symptoms, causes, and methods of detecting diseases. RBС-Ukraine is not responsible for any diagnoses that readers may make based on materials from the resource. We do not recommend self-treatment and advise consulting a doctor in case of any health concerns.
