The Healthy Diet »

Many people are led to be­lieve that eating snacks is bad for them because the foods typically considered snacks —candy, cookies, potato chips and oth­er so-called junk foods — are high in sugar, salt and fat, and low in quality nutrients. But snacks do not have to be nutritionally poor; nor do they have to ruin your appetite for meals or cause you to gain weight. In fact, if you are hungry between meals, it is usually better to snack lightly ra­ther than not to snack and then eat too much at your next meal. The Wowing suggestions show how be­tween-meal snacks can supply im­portant nutrients and actually keep you from overeating:

1. Avoid high-sodium snacks. As the chart on this page shows, snacks like potato chips, peanuts, pretzels and crackers, which are often lib­erally salted, can substantially increase your sodium intake. too much sodium in the diet more than 2,500 milligrams a day can lead to high blood pressure, cording to a number of studies. you like these foods, at least salt-free varieties.

2. Snack on foods that have been highly refined and pr Fresh fruits and vegetables, for ample, contain more fiber and than processed varieties, so they you up on fewer calories. F foods also typically contain vitamins and minerals and less For instance; plain baked potatoes contain only a fraction of the fat potato chips and french fries during processing.

3. Choose crackers and made with unsaturated oil. crackers contain palm or coconut both of which consist of mostly orated fats that can contribute asteriosclerosis. ealthier crackers seasame sticks, stoned wheat crackers, rice cakes and bran wafers are made with unsaturated oils such as soybean, safflower or corn oil.

4. Make your own popcorn in a hot air popper but skip the butter. If you use butter or oil, the popcorn absorbs most of it, more than docubling the calories and boosting the fat content substantially. To ass flavor, sprinkle the hot popcorn with herbs, spices or a small amount of grated sharp cheese.

5. Unsweetened or low sugar cereals eaten with low fat milk or yogurt makes a healthy, filling sanck. The recipe for muesli is an example. Avoid commercially made granola and granola bars, which generally contain saturated fat in the form of coconut oil.

6. Soft drinks, which many people drink with snacks, usually contain flavoring, sugar and water, but little else. More nutritious beverages are made from fruit mixtures, such as homemade cranberry-spice, blueber­ry-vanilla or raspberry syrup These and other drinks made from fresh fruits contain vitamins, minerals and fiber.