Americans make an average of 200 decisions about food every day, and often unknowingly. A portion of those decisions usually consists of two or three snack choices. A recent peer-reviewed study intended to explore snack consumption in adults according to their Type 2 diabetes status also uncovered the poor quality of snacking among adult Americans.
On average, adult Americans consume 400–500 calories a day from snacks alone. Unfortunately, most people aren’t reaching for nutrient-dense, whole-food snacks such as berries or carrot sticks. Convenience foods and grab-and-go treats containing large amounts of sugar and refined carbohydrates tend to make up the most popular between-meal choices. According to the study, only 5 percent of the calories taken in from snacks came from fruits and vegetables, most snacks were low in fiber and high in sugar, and more than 80 percent of the grains consumed were from refined sources.
