Snacking for weight loss – jury still out on old chestnut
IT’S AN age-old debate – do you eat three square meals a day or snack on several smaller portions throughout the day to lose weight?
Well, according to Irene Labuschagne, a dietitian from the Nutrition Information Centre at Stellenbosch University, the jury is still out.
This is despite a recent report from the Daily Mail, quoting the head of the National Obesity Forum in the UK, Professor David Haslam, as saying frequent snacking is ideal for busy professionals, and the concept of three meals a day is outdated.
He said: “Feeding your body little and often with vegetable-based snacks ensures your metabolic system is steadily stimulated and provides a continuous supply of nutrients to your body, which is particularly important for today’s busy lifestyles.”
But Labuschagne noted: “Research on time-restricted meals/meal frequency and snacking is limited, and clear conclusions cannot be made at present.
“Findings, however, suggest that meal frequency is an important determinant of nutrient intakes and diet quality in healthy adults.”
According to Labuschagne, trial research does not support the assertion that meal frequency consistently impacts on metabolism.
“No recommendation can be made at this time regarding meal spacing for the purposes of changing metabolism.
“Many people believe that eating more meals leads to increased metabolic rate, so that your body burns more calories overall. It is true that the body expends a certain amount of energy digesting and assimilating the nutrients in a meal,” she explained.
She continued: “This is termed the thermic effect of food and amounts to about 20-30% of calories for protein, 5-10% for carbohydrates and 0-3% for fat calories.
“On average, the thermic effect of food is somewhere around 10% of the total calorie intake.
“However, what matters here is the total amount of energy consumed, not how many meals you eat.”
So does snacking indeed aid in weight loss, we asked Labuschagne.
“No, not based on current evidence. But this may depend on the individual. If snacking helps a person experience fewer cravings and makes him or her less likely to binge, then it’s probably a good idea,” she said, adding: “Epidemiological studies of eating frequency lead to different conclusions, depending on the outcome of interest.
“The relation between eating frequency and obesity is mixed but seems to be more consistent with respect to cardiovascular disease risk factors and diabetes mellitus. In those cases, greater eating frequency seems to be related to improved risk status.”
But if you decide that snacking is for you after having the appropriate dietary tests and research done, then Labuschagne advises: “Ultimately, the goal may be to help the individual to spread energy intake over a defined portion of the day in a more balanced way rather than limited to one segment of the day or continuously over long periods of time.
“This does not mean that total energy intake and macronutrient balance can be ignored, but simply that the frequency and timing of intake are the basis for building the structure for intentional eating.”
She added: “Keep track of dietary intake over time. Write it down on paper, keep notes on your computer or digital device, or use a diet-tracking website or app. Track the times you eat, the foods you eat and portion sizes, and make notes about what you were doing or feeling at the time.”
If it makes a person experience fewer cravings and less likely to binge, then it’s probably a good idea