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On a low-carb diet, the best snack is often no
snack. But what if you get hungry and your next meal is too far off? When that happens, you'll
want to have some low-carb friendly options on hand. Which foods should you choose when the
urge to eat strikes between meals? Today, I'll share the best and worst snacks to
eat on a low-carb diet.
Let’s get into it!
Hi, I’m Dr. Andreas Eenfeldt, CEO of Diet
Doctor, and today I’ll be talking about low-carb snacks. Let's start with the easiest options.
The best easy-prep snacks on a low-carb diet provide protein, fat, or
both – with very few carbs. Eggs are a fantastic low-carb food that provide
protein and fat in a portable package. Keep a bowl of hard-boiled eggs in your fridge and
take a couple for a quick grab-and-go snack with about 1 gram of carbs at most.
Not a fan of eggs? A slice of cheese or cold cuts are also quick and easy
high-protein options. A snack-size portion will give you about 1 gram of carbs, at most.
Avocados and olives don't have much protein but they are high in fat, as well as
fiber, which can help you feel full. Plus, they're very low in net carbs, also
known as digestible carbs.
Half an avocado or 20 olives contain about 1 to 2 grams of net carbs.
And for a portable, completely shelf-stable snack, have a small portion of nuts. You'll
get a little protein, lots of fat, and some fiber. If you keep the portion size
to a small handful or less, you'll get about 1 or 2 grams of net carbs from most nuts – with
the exception of cashews. More on those later.
Fresh vegetables are low in calories but
high in vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Simply slice them up and enjoy with a creamy
dip or dressing. If you want a snack with less than 3 grams of net carbs per cup, go
for celery, cucumbers, or green peppers. Red and yellow bell peppers
are a bit higher in carbs, at about 4 to 5 grams of net carbs per
serving. If your diet allows a few more carbs, carrots are another option. One cup of chopped
carrots contains about 7 grams of net carbs.
Do you want a snack that's a bit sweeter? Go
for berries.
Keep in mind that they're a bit higher in carbs than most of the other snacks I've
mentioned — especially blueberries. Choose half a cup of raspberries, blackberries, or strawberries
for a naturally sweet dessert with 3 to 4 grams of net carbs per half cup. Enjoy them with a small
amount of whipped heavy cream. Notice I said "a small amount." Cream is delicious and can be
easy to overconsume. So, only add a little bit.
Here's a low-carb snack option that might
surprise you: dark chocolate. Again, I recommend a small portion of this tasty treat. Although dark
chocolate has less sugar than milk chocolate, it's still not a low-carb food. However, a small amount
can be a nice snack to enjoy occasionally.
Choose chocolate with a high percentage
of cocoa. The higher the cocoa percentage, the less sugar the chocolate contains.
One square of 86% chocolate has roughly 2 grams of net carbs. If you're OK with
a few more carbs, 70% chocolate provides about 3.5 grams of net carbs per square.
Other good snack options with less than a gram of carbs include pork rinds and no-sugar-added beef
jerky. However, beef jerky isn't always a good low-carb snack option.
Why is that? M ost brands
contain sugar, which can drive their carb count up to 3 grams or more per piece. So, be sure
to read the label before you snack on jerky.
Now, which are the worst low-carb snack
choices you can possibly make? The truth is, there are many snacks you should avoid. Some
of them are surprising; others, not so much.
Let's start with the snacks that many people
would consider healthy choices, such as fruit. Aside from berries, fruit is pretty high in carbs.
So it's not a great option on a low-carb diet. Fruit juice is much worse, because
it contains no fiber and is more concentrated in sugar than whole fruit.
Cafe lattes — even unsweetened — are rich in carbs because they contain a large amount
of milk. Vitamin water has added vitamins, but it also has a lot of added sugar and
a whopping 32 grams of carbs per bottle.
Earlier, I talked about nuts being a good
snack, when consumed in small amounts. However, cashews provide between three to six times
more carbs per serving compared to other nuts. So, you're better off choosing any
other type of nut for a snack.
But the truly terrible snack options are
highly-processed foods that are high in both carbs AND fat. I'm talking about donuts,
chips, candy bars, cookies, ice cream, and similar treats.
These foods can be extremely
difficult to eat in small quantities. In fact, once you start eating them, it may be hard
to stop. So avoid these foods altogether.
Let's do a quick recap. The best low-carb
snacks are often the simplest: hard-boiled eggs, cheese, cold cuts, avocado, olives,
or nuts. Sliced vegetables with dip, low-carb berries with cream, or a small square
of dark chocolate are also good options. Avoid fruit and fruit juice, coffee
drinks made with lots of milk, and cashews. Finally, stay far, far away
from processed high-fat, high-carb foods like cakes, cookies, chips, and candy bars.
Do you want to learn more about low-carb snacks, including 21 easy recipes you can
make ahead of time to eat when needed? See the link below for our complete guide,
"Low-carb snacks: the best and the worst."
For even more information and guidance, sign up
for a free trial, where you'll have access to meal plans with shopping lists, our personalized meal
planner, video courses, and many other exclusive member benefits.
Find out more at DietDoctor.com.
Good luck, and I’ll see you in our next video..
