Grazing on snacks or foods across the day lead to irregular eating patterns and make if difficult to regulate hunger and appetite cues for children (and adults!). To key to help kids feel full and satisfied between meals is offering filling snack options.
A good formula to keep in mind when thinking of filling snack option is to offer a meal that includes carbohydrates, proteins, fats and fibre. Some snack ideas could look like:
- Cheese slices, biscuits and dried fruit.
- Fruit, yoghurt with a handful or two of cereal.
- Crackers and dip with carrot and cucumber sticks
- Smoothie with banana, milk and peanut butter (and cocoa powder or Milo for added flavour!).
- Cheese and vegemite on toast with apple slices.
If you’re reading this thinking ‘my child could never eat that’ – treat snack times as opportunities to expose your child to new foods. Pairing a safe of preferred food with a combination of carbohydrates, proteins, fats and fibre to provide the chance to learn about something new!
By Dr Shabnam Kashef
