American adults consume 400-500 calories per day (about the same amount as the recommended main meal intake) in snacks that have little nutritional value but contain large amounts of sugar. "You don't realize the magnitude of the impact until you see it with your own eyes," said senior author Christopher Taylor of Ohio State University (OSU).
"Snacks contribute to a meal's worth of the food we eat, but it's not actually a meal," he adds. "You know what dinner is going to be: a protein, a side or two. But if you have a meal that's the same as your snack, it's completely different, usually carbs, sugar, not a lot of protein, not a lot of fruit, not a vegetable, so it's not a nutritionally complete meal."
Previous research has shown that snacks play an important role in maintaining a healthy weight, helping us consume fewer calories at meals, but choosing poor nutritional choices can negate the benefits.
Researchers at Oregon State University looked at National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data from 23,708 U.S. adults over the age of 30 and found that on average they consumed a lot of calories in the form of snacks, but with little benefit. Although people with type 2 diabetes ate fewer sugary foods between main meals, average energy expenditure for the entire sample group ranged from 19.5% to 22.4% of total energy for the day.
The researchers believe this should be a red flag for healthy people who are at risk for diabetes and other chronic diseases due to poor lifestyle choices.
"Diabetes education appears to be working, but we may need to educate people at risk for diabetes or even people with normal blood sugar levels to start improving eating behaviors before people develop chronic disease," Taylor said.
The most commonly eaten snacks are rich in carbohydrates and fats and also include candy, alcoholic beverages, and dairy products. However, last on the list are vegetables. While the data only covers a single 24-hour period for participants and may not reflect normal eating habits, the researchers believe it's still a good snapshot given the size of the study.
"It gives us a real snapshot of a lot of people," Taylor said. “This can help us understand what’s going on, where nutritional gaps may be and the education we can provide.”
Researchers hope this kind of research will help people make better choices when it comes to what they eat between meals, rather than shaming people for snacking - which isn't a "bad" habit by any means.
"We need to move from reducing added sugar to healthier snacking patterns, we've gotten to the point of demonizing individual foods, but we have to look at the whole picture. Removing added sugar doesn't automatically improve vitamin C, vitamin D, phosphorus and iron levels. If we remove refined grains, we lose the nutrients that come with fortification."
While it may seem like common sense, planning snacks the same way you plan meals can help avoid consuming too many calories — something researchers add requires even greater attention this time of year.
“Especially during the holidays, it’s all about the environment and the resources available and planning accordingly,” Taylor said. "It's about shopping behavior: 'What do we have at home? We think about what we're going to bring for lunch, what we're going to make for dinner, but there's no such plan for our snacks. Then you're at the mercy of what's available in the environment."
The study was published in the journal PLoS Global Public Health.