We're all familiar with that little hunger that strikes between meals. We're quick to indulge in a quick and convenient chocolate bar, but it's far from ideal for satiety, let alone health. This bar is a snack, and its name comes from the English language.

Translated, snack means nibbling in French. Snacking refers to a category of food products that are quick and easy to eat. These may include chips, cookies, doughnuts, popcorn or chocolate bars.

For some time, perhaps accentuated by the covid pandemic, consumers have realised the harmful consequences of these snacking solutions on the body. The industry is adapting.

Depending on the time of consumption of a snack, the effects produced will not be the same and will not achieve the same objectives:

• As a snack at 10am or 5pm:

A healthy snack is perfect for a 10am or 5pm snack at work or on the move. In case of a small hunger, it will be a good alternative to the usual nibbles. The aim is to fill a small hunger. The fibre content will help to achieve this objective. Above all, these snacks will replace a snack that is too sweet, while keeping the pleasure of eating. A raw bar is also ideal. 

• At breakfast:

French breakfast is known to be very good but above all too sweet. Viennese pastries, white bread and spreads are as greedy as they are calorific. Moreover, it is a meal that is too often forgotten, due to the lack of time between waking up and leaving for work. A very bad idea for your body.

A cereal bar rich in protein and low in sugar is therefore ideal. Practical and therefore quickly consumed at home or on the road, its low carbohydrate content is perfect for breaking the night's fast. Your body will not be attacked by a load of sugar as soon as you wake up. The vitamins and proteins (provided in particular by soya) will give you the energy you need to start your day.

• Before or after sport: 

30 minutes before your sports session, protein snacks, with their convenient format and low-sugar composition, will help you achieve better performance. Your body will benefit from a source of protein and carbohydrates that will help give you the energy you need to look after your muscles. After a physical effort (training or competition), hunger is often limited. A snack will have a high protein content to optimise the reconstruction of muscle fibres destroyed during exercise and thus maintain or increase muscle mass. Recovery will be quicker and will allow you to continue training more quickly.

• In front of the television or a series.

 It's a well-known fact that television makes us want to eat. If it's not the adverts that suggest you snack, it could be the lure of a good series. Again, chips and popcorn are not a good idea for your body. Instead, opt for low-sugar snacks. For example, chocolate-covered puffed soy balls or low-sugar granola. There will be the mechanism of not eating in small bites, throughout the time spent in front of the screen, without the guilt of malnutrition.

The problem with snacks generally is their composition. They are often very sweet (some 45g chocolate bars contain 27g of sugar) and high in fat.

Today, our lifestyles mean that we consume more and more of it: less time to eat, more snacking in front of the TV series for example. Recently, the WHO (World Health Organisation) lowered its recommendations on sugar, which should constitute, according to its advice, 5% of daily energy intake, i.e. the equivalent of 25 grams per day, i.e. six teaspoons for a ration of 2,000 calories. However, these recommendations do not take into account the sugars found in fresh fruit or milk. However, most countries far exceed these guidelines. In France, the average consumption is 95 grams per day, i.e. four times the permitted dose.

This is why we see new snacks arriving on the shelves of supermarkets in France: healthy snacks. Cereal bars, raw bars (often date-based), or even chocolate-covered bars with a gourmet filling but with atypical and healthier ingredients (soya, peas, chickpeas, etc.). These snacks are therefore lower in sugar and calories, often gluten- and lactose-free, and sometimes composed of superfoods (gingseng, soya, etc.). The aim is to offer consumers a better solution without changing their habits.

Snacks produced according to the RDA.

The way of thinking about snacks has totally changed. Some brands are thinking more about the conception of the snack as a meal, i.e. what it will bring to the person who consumes it. They are designed more on the basis of RDAs (Recommended Daily Allowances), set by health bodies such as EFSA (European Food Safety Authority). 

Thus there are bars that are rich in vitamins, while others are richer in protein, or with very little sugar.

Beware that simply stating "healthy snacks" or "sugar-free snacks" does not guarantee a better choice. To avoid a snack becoming a simple treat, it should be chosen carefully, focusing on its composition and intake.

It is important to ensure that the bar chosen is low in calories (less than 250 kcal) and if possible not too sweet. Fibre (>5g) can help control blood sugar peaks and ensure satiety. The vitamins that a snack may contain can be important for your well-being. Finally, if the snack is a source of protein (> 13g), it is a real asset, whether you are a sportsman or not. It will provide a significant amount of protein.