Make snacks work for you

Four snacks for those with a sweet tooth
The idea is to break the need for intense sweetness. Do this by eating lots of fresh fruit, which is naturally sweet, and by including protein with each snack to help stabilise blood sugar levels. Try:

• An oatcake on its own or with nut butter
• A yoghurt, topped with flaked coconut and chopped dried apricots
• Cheese cubes with grapes
• Strips of ham wrapped around pitted prunes

Four snacks if savoury is your thing
Aim to satisfy it with lean protein sources and eat snacks full of flavour from herbs and spices instead of from salt. Try:

• Half an avocado with a few prawns
• Vegetable sticks or breadsticks with dips such as hummus, guacamole, mushroom pate, tzatziki, or mackerel pate
• A cup of warming soup (fresh soups are available in cartons)
• Bruschetta - toasted bread (ciabatta is best) brushed with olive oil and garlic and topped with chopped fresh tomato and shredded basil leaf or spread with tapenada (olive or sun-dried tomato paste available from supermarkets)

Four snacks to take to work
Have something easily to hand in your desk drawer or in the glove compartment of your car, it helps to reduce the urge to buy something unhealthy on the run. Try:

• Dried apple rings or raisins with a few unsalted nuts
• A small packet of low-salt corn chips with salsa dip
• Mini rice cakes and a cheese stick
• Good quality high-cocoa content dark chocolate is much lower in sugar and ideal when nothing but chocolate will do

Four ideas for mid-morning snacks
Keeping energy levels up during the morning means we often dip into the biscuit tin. Start with a blood-sugar stabilising breakfast with protein - such as an egg, or wholemeal toast, porridge or low-sugar muesli. Always add fruit. It is well established that sugary cereals and white bread lead to reduced concentration and energy mid-morning. Try:

• Rye cracker with cottage cheese or hummus
• A fruit scone or banana muffin
• A mashed banana piled on some rye toast and sprinkled with cinnamon
• Biscuits with high fruit content such as fig rolls and Garibaldi