The anatomy of the healthy snack

In the first week of April the Uttar Pradesh government gave reason for the small but arguably significant percentage of health conscious parents reason to celebrate mdash by asking schools to ban the sale of junk food within and outside school premises The letters addressed to the principals of various schools asked that the sale of carbonated drinks and snacks including wafers and other ldquosalted and friedrdquo items be banned The idea is to dissuade children from subsisting on a diet that is high in trans fats and sugars so as to prevent the onset of lifestyle diseases including obesity Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure problems In what has been termed a ldquosignificantrdquo move by the Secondary Education Council that was acting on instructions from the Union Health and Family Planning Ministry both children and parents are being compelled to make more conscious decisions about their food choices ldquoChildren should be educated on what to choose but it is also the responsibility of parents to make lsquogood foodsrsquo available and to teach children healthy eating habitsrdquo says Dr Eileen Canday chief dietitian with the Breach Candy Hospital Trust ldquoJunk foods are habitformingrdquo says nutritionist Samreedhi Goel adding ldquoParents need to buy fewer processed foods including readytoeat noodles and potatobased smileysrdquo If yoursquore looking to detox your kitchen shelves of junk but donrsquot know where to start Goelrsquos rule is to ldquochuck everything that is fried or needs to be fried and has excess saltrdquo Donrsquot deny yourself Banning of certain foods however can be counterproductive according to Canday ldquoFood bans can lead to food obsession diet myths and lack of pleasure in eatingrdquo she says advising moderation ldquoChildren should be able to enjoy different foods in moderation We have to remember that eating is not just a biological event it is also one of the lifersquos many pleasuresrdquo adds Canday Goel too advocates moderation ldquoTeach them moderation from an early age so that everything doesnrsquot feel like a compromiserdquo It helps too if you practice what you preach ldquoIf yoursquore eating highcalorie foods yourself you canrsquot tell your kids not to eat itrdquo Experts advise stocking up on healthy snacks like ldquohard fruitsrdquo apples pears or oranges dry snacks ldquobhel without sev or purirdquo khakras poha beaten rice flakes chiwda a serving of dalia upma see box for recipe a brown bread or multigrain cucumbertomatolettuce sandwich with coriander chutney highfibre biscuits and lowfat yoghurts Banned for life But what about conventional wisdom that dictates that we rely on three square meals at regular intervals and avoid snacking between meals Dr Meena Mehta an associate Food Science and Nutrition Professor with Dr BM Nanavati College of Home Science says ldquoEating throughout the day allows nutrients to digest gradually providing you with more energy for longer periods of timerdquo She adds ldquoConsuming large amounts of food in one or two sittings takes more time and energy to digest and can lead to healthrelated issues including high blood pressure high cholesterol Type 2 diabetes osteoporosis or weight gainrdquo Time to bring out the multigrain loaves and lowfat sandwich spreads Yes provided of course you remember that a little snack goes a long wayu00a0 2 jhatpat snacks made with oats Oats Pancake 1 katori oats 1 tsp wheat flour 3 to 4 tsp milk 1 to 2 tsp yoghurt 1 tsp honey Method gt Blitz the oats in a mixie gt Take four teaspoons of the oat flour and add all the remaining ingredients except honey to make a dosalike batter gt Pour one ladle of this batter on to a nonstick pan and cook the pancake on both sides gt Dilute one teaspoon of honey with two teaspoons of water and pour this mixture over the pancake Serve immediately Dalia Upma 1 katori cracked wheat dalia lapsi 1 katori water 4 to 5 tsp yoghurt 4 to 5 French beans finely chopped 12 carrot finely chopped small onion finely chopped 12 tsp oil 12 tsp mustard seeds rai 4 to 5 curry leaves 1 to 2 green chillies finely chopped salt to taste coriander leaves for garnishing Method gt Boil pressure cook the daliya and set aside gt Heat the oil add the mustard seeds When they splutter add the curry leaves and green chillies Stirfry for a few seconds gt Add the chopped veggies and cook till still a little crunchy gt Lastly add the cooked oats yoghurt adding a little water if the mixture is too thick gt Cook for a few minutes and serve hot garnished with roughly chopped coriander leaves Recipes courtesy nutritionist Samreedhi Goelu00a0 Flax appeal Bollywood actress Neha Sharma likes to snack on roasted flax seeds and black grapes ldquoGrapes take care of my sugar cravings and flaxseeds take care of my salt cravingsrdquo says the actress who will soon be seen in the sequel to Kyaa Kool Hain Hum The actress also swears by green tea and lemon water with honey which she says helps cleanse her system