Nine Alarmingly Unhealthy Snacks To Avoid - Read And Weep

Whenever you get ready to eat anything, it would be ideal to carefully analyze the nutritional value of the meal or snack and to investigate whether the food really meets your needs. We're not going to do that all the time, of course, but we can definitely do better.

A snack that is high on the nutritional value index is healthy for you. On the other hand, snacks that are low on nutritional value index but high in calories and unhealthy, processed, fats should be avoided at any cost.

Such snacks are unhealthy and only contribute towards making us obese and often nutritionally deficient, as well. Owing to our busy schedules and easy access to low-cost snack vending machines, we tend to satisfy our hunger pangs with unhealthy snacks. While buying snacks, you should always look out for the calories, total fat, trans and unsaturated fats, milligrams of sodium, and grams of sugar specified on the nutrition facts label.

Another fact commonly associated with munching unhealthy snacks is that people tend to forget to keep the portion sizes in control. Working people tend to consume chips, crackers, pretzels, and fries in between meals and many a times it becomes an addiction. Unhealthy snacks taste great but are bad for the body.

Some of the most commonly consumed unhealthy snacks that ought to be avoided are listed below.

Cookies

Cookies are loaded with trans fats and excess sugar. They are high on hydrogenated vegetable oils, flour, and shortening and are clearly among the unhealthiest snacks that you can consume. All these ingredients are excellent resources for childhood obesity, or obesity in adulthood for that matter. They taste good but are not filling and as a result are over-consumed.

Potato Chips

Potato chips are one of the most easily available, sinfully tasty, but extremely unhealthy snacks. They are full of fats, oils, and salt. The amount of salt consumed while eating potato chips is good enough to cause hypertension and water retention when consumed on a regular basis. Consumption of potato chips also contributes greatly to obesity. Potato chips are known to contain acrylamide, a carcinogen that forms when foods are fried or baked at high temperatures.

Ice cream

Ice cream is made of whole milk and refined sugars, both of which are rich in fats and can cause obesity. They are full of calories but less in nutrients and are therefore not healthy. Unless, of course, you opt for home-made options such as those made exclusively with bananas.

Chicken nuggets

Most people think that because chicken nuggets have chicken as the basic ingredient, they is bound to be healthy. On the contrary, chicken nuggets are one of the worst snacks. Chicken nuggets comprise hydrogenated oils which make them easy to reheat and transport. Trans fat found in chicken nuggets is known to cause heart disease, cancer, and obesity. People are best advised not be lured by the protein content of chicken nuggets. There sure are healthier alternatives to meet your protein requirements without the extra dose of fat and sodium found in chicken nuggets.

The Unhealthy Snacks That You Should Avoid

Donuts

Donuts, especially chocolate-coated ones, are very unhealthy as they are loaded with saturated fats. Most varieties of ready-to-eat donuts contain an overdose of sugar, trans fat and refined flour. Each donut contains about 10 to 20 grams of fat and provides approximately 250 to 300 calories.

Donuts are basically equivalent to sugary fried bread. There is sugar in the dough, filling, and the glazed topping.

Soda

There is nothing healthy about soda bottles or cans. All that they have is carbonation, addictive quality, artificial coloring, sugars, and loads of coloring. Diet sodas are even worse with the artificial sweeteners which are quite harmful. A 12 ounce serving of carbonated soda drink is loaded with about 150 calories. It is a proven fact that sodas can cause pancreatic cancer, cardiovascular diseases, obesity, and diabetes.

Packaged frozen snacks

Even though they might sound very convenient, packaged frozen snacks should be avoided at any cost. The amount of calories and saturated fats in frozen snacks is tremendously high. Processed meats contain chemical preservatives which are known to increase the risk of cancer. Packaged frozen snacks are rich in salt, cholesterol and fat and contain very less nutrients and fibers.

Pork rinds

Pork rinds are quite popular with the people who want to stick to low-carb diets. Pork rinds typically contain salt and pork rind which is the tough outer layer of pig skin. Moreover, pork rinds are made by first dehydrating the salt coated rinds and then deep frying them in oil for about a minute. They are also high on saturated fats, which make them even unhealthier.

Cheese and Club Crackers

Cheese and club crackers are not filling enough to satisfy you for any period of time, and therefore people have the tendency of over eating them. A serving (an ounce) of crackers contains about 220 calories, 15 grams of fat, saturated fat, and enough salt to exceed your daily sodium intake requirement. When people double the serving size, they actually double the calories and fat as well. A healthier alternative is to opt for the organic varieties and the ones that have whole grains in them.

Health Implications of Consuming Unhealthy Snacks

Consuming unhealthy snacks and fast food is one of the most common factors that contribute towards the development of cancer. Eating unhealthy snacks on a regular basis results in depriving your body of the important vitamins and minerals that are vital for developing the immune system, as filling up on unhealthy snacks means avoiding healthy meals, too. You can only eat so much, after all. A poor diet weakens the immune system and adversely affects the body’s capability to fight off toxins. This in turn results in the development of cancerous cells.

Fast food is also a major cause of obesity. Fast food can be obesogenic because it is associated with large portion sizes and high-energy density. Fast foods also contain high amounts of industrially produced trans fatty acids which are not good for your body.

 While choosing your snacks, it is best advised to skip anything that comes in boxes, wrappers, and bags. They are quite unlikely to be healthy. You should always stick to the whole, real foods and give due weightage to the nutrient quotient of the snacks consuming them.

Reasons behind the popularity of Unhealthy Snacks

The mains reasons that can be attributed for the popularity of unhealthy snacks are convenience, advertising, and a lack of self-discipline in the youth. Junk food fits in perfectly in our busy schedules as it is easily available at affordable prices. Moreover, organizations marketing these unhealthy snacks rely heavily on advertising so that more and more people get to know about their offerings. A majority of the younger generation gives in to the addictive taste of these unhealthy snacks and ignores the nutrient quotient altogether which can prove to be detrimental in the long run.