Snack Attack

This time of day gets me. Unless I am super busy, I start winding down for the day, thinking about what's going on tonight, which leads me to thinking about dinner, which makes me think, hmm I am hungry now. MOST of the time I try to plan ahead for this time and bring a piece of fruit, or string cheese, or granola bar, or something that will help the snack attack.

So today, I just had some grapes - a good choice to be sure. But you had better believe that if I HAD had $0.75 that I probably would have gotten Skittles. Or a Twix. Or maybe those shortbread cookie things in the machine.

And I am not alone!!! See this article on msnbc.com http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26740658/
and posted here for your reading enjoyment.
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Despite our best intentions to eat something healthy, we often choose sugary snacks.

Dutch researchers asked 585 participants to pick between four snacks: an apple, a banana, a candy bar and a molasses waffle. About half of the participants indicated they would choose the apple or banana.

But when presented with the actual snacks a week later, 27 percent of those who had said they'd pick a healthy one switched to the candy bar or waffle. And more than 90 percent of those who had initially made an unhealthy choice stuck with it.

The researchers figure that while we are in control of our intentions, our actual choices are often made impulsively, even unconsciously.

"A substantial gap between healthy snack choice intentions and actual behavior was demonstrated," said study leader Pascalle Weijzen of Wageningen University in the Netherlands.

"Despite that gap, the results suggest that individuals who plan to make a healthful choice are more likely to do so than those who plan to make unhealthful choices. Because more than 50 percent of the population seems to have no intention at all of making a healthful choice, identifying tools by which this group can be motivated to choose a healthful snack is strongly needed."

The study is detailed in the September/October issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.