Nutrition

What are the healthiest snack foods?

I’m a real grazer – I always have food in easy reach at work. I’m trying to cut things like crisps and sweets out of my diet, but what do you suggest I replace them with?
John Bingham, by email
 
Snacks should complement meals nutritionally. In other words, if you have cereal and milk for breakfast, snack on fruit. If you have toast and fruit juice, choose a yoghurt. But whatever you have for breakfast, you should avoid crisps and sweets because they provide a lot of calories but very few nutrients.

The best snacks between meals are those with a low glycaemic index (GI). This means their energy is released slowly, which helps to keep blood sugar levels stable and stops energy levels from crashing and leaving you hungry again half an hour later. Low GI foods include dried apricots, apple juice, oat flapjacks, nuts and raisins and crackers with low-fat cheese.