Friday, April 27, 2012

The Best Snacks on a Low Carb Diet

Ice cream, cookies, chips, microwave popcorn, and candy bars are some of the popular snack foods. Unfortunately, they have little nutritional value and are packed with carbohydrates and empty calories. What are your options for low carb foods and snacks then?

You can choose foods that feature carbs with low glycemic indexes, contain heart-healthy fats, are balanced with protein, and are high in important nutrients and fiber. There are plenty of healthy snacks for people on a low carb diet. You can make peanut butter and celery sticks, Caesar salad with grilled chicken, avocado and shrimp cocktail, or carrot sticks and hummus. You can cut a large carrot into coins or sticks and serve with hummus. One serving contains 133 calories, 0.9 g saturated fat, 5.8 g fiber, and 15.8 g carbohydrates. Cold or hold soy latte is a low-carb beverage you can prepare at home. Blend a shot of espresso with a cup of light soymilk and serve with crushed ice.

Other healthy low-carb options include deviled eggs, celery with tuna salad, cheese sticks, and cheese with a few apple slices. You can make lettuce roll-ups by rolling tuna, egg salad, vegetables and luncheon meat in lettuce leaves. Alternatively, you can prepare lunch meat roll-ups. Roll vegetables, cheese, and other fillings in lunch meat. Making a low-carb dip is a good idea. You can spread spinach dip or bean dip on lettuce or lunch meat and roll it up. Another option is to have spinach dip and raw veggies or mushrooms with cheese spread. Other healthy options include ricotta cheese with nuts and fruit, pepperoni chips, low-carb snack bars, and parmesan crisps. You can have pork grinds as well and if you are a vegetarian, you can prepare fried tofu chips. Toasted squash seeds or pumpkin seeds are yet another option for low-carb dieters.

You can find low-carb snacks in the store as well, but make sure you look at the label. Sugar alcohols in low carb snacks include sorbitol, xylitol, and maltitol. Sugar alcohols are not fully absorbed by your body, and they provide fewer calories. Sugar alcohols aid your weight management efforts and don’t promote tooth decay. Some low-carb sweeteners also inhibit bacterial growth in the mouth. At the same time, sugar alcohols ferment in the intestines, and this can cause diarrhoea, gas, and bloating. Low-carb dieters have different reactions to artificial sweeteners, and experts recommend careful experimentation. 

To read more about low carb food snacks go to: http://www.lowcarbfoods.org/