Why do we snack?

[MikePollard]

Why do we snack and often snack on what we know will damage us and our health outcomes?

This is a worthwhile watch as Robert Cywes goes into the psychology of carb addiction (for that's what it is) and how to address the issue.

youtube.com/watch?v=IdjGold...(Not working as expected?)

[TheAwfulToad Ambassador]

I'd say one reason people snack is "because we're told to". There's loads of silly advice from the BDA and from the NHS about the "importance" of snacking, and much of it is aimed at kids ... who then grow up thinking snacking is normal.

[Cooper27]

I remember reading about the history of eating, and apparently during the Roman times, it was typical to only eat one meal a day, at noon. At least that was how the soldiers did it.

It was a good while later before we started eating a second meal, and the idea of three square meals a day only came about in the last few hundred years.

Snacking supposedly really took off in the last few decades, when they invented the idea of elevenses.

TAD has a point about children - consider the school set up, with a morning break, which children should be given a snack for. And the after school snack too. It's a great success of marketing, to persuade people they need to eat more food (which comes in a convenient package, because it's a time sink to make actual food).

[Fruitandnutcase in reply to Cooper27]

I can remember when I was growing up in Scotland, I’m 70 now so go back 50 or 60 years, we always had ‘supper’ - tea and toast normally but if friends came round it was a decent spread - before we went to bed. Bizarre eh.

You see so much advice nowadays about eating regularly throughout the day I can’t understand the compulsion to keep the population guzzling all day.

[Cooper27 in reply to Fruitandnutcase]

Yep, I remember supper was a thing! But it went out of fashion thankfully.

It's weird how we've evolved so much from one meal a day to grazing all day. It's no wonder diabetes is on the rise if we never let our insulin levels balance properly...

[Fruitandnutcase in reply to Cooper27]

Exactly, couldn’t agree more but think of all the medical advice given to eat little and often.

[15beansoup]

Wow, great topic, we snack for many reasons, we are trained to, we learn as children the food pyramid and the habits of snacks all in the name of, got to keep those brains working, Saturday cartoons which are now everyday cartoons with buying this toy and this food. Movie night out or in is an event, order a lg pizza, big bowl of popcorn, chocolate bars, wine, and pop. What happened to let's just enjoy a good movie and that was the event. watching tv you are bombarded with tv commercials that last for 7 mins all with the intent to get the consumer to get up and buy their food because food is hot and ready no work just drive up and get it, no one cooks anymore, and now everyone delivers. Families do not sit down and have meals together anymore, they're glued to their cell phones, pc, tv, gaming. hectic sports schedules, we snack because we are bored, lonely, food is our friend, it comforts us (why) is the key here, if you have a break up/relationship problem just eat a half gal of ice cream it's in all the movies, we snack for anxiety, we snack because of illnesses, we snack because of medications, Understand, we snack because of the brainwashing that is going on 24/7 of our entire life span controlled by devices outside of ourselves that's why we snack !!

[BridgeGirl]

Can we start a campaign to outlaw the word "snack"? And particularly the verb "snacking?" If we refer to it as food and eating, we may get a different perspective on it

[WestieMaltese]

Hi MikePollard, I got halfway through this, and was so upset at the thought of my snacks being prohibited, I had to have a square of chocolate! I am exactly the type of carb addict/emotional eater Cywes describes.

A difficult, abusive childhood set up the pattern of food as comfort. And while i have lost 6lbs since 5 July with a LCHF 'lite' approach, I know that any threat or thwart sends me back to the fridge, to a "permitted" snack of cheese or chocolate. I don't binge, but the risk is there.

Advice ranges from "take a walk" to "have a bath" or "breathe deeply" to all of which I answer "go away." If those things worked, I wouldn't comfort eat. And who has time to run a bath in the middle of a normal day? This habit is deeply entrenched. I have even thought of taking up smoking to break it. Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks very much for sharing though. It is because it speaks so clearly to me that I hate it!