Women in her 40's putting her hands in front of her to decline a snack between meals

How to Avoid Snacking Between Meals and Why It Matters for Your Health

For many years I have encouraged both my clients, and myself, to avoid snacking between meals. From a personal perspective, I can see and feel how it improves both my physical appearance and mental wellbeing. And my clients notice this too.

I have never been driven by diets or diets for weight loss. I am, and always will be, driven by health. And when you get your food balance right, it doesn’t just influence your health, it influences your body shape and weight too.

In the past 30 years I have seen many diet fads appear: paleo, ketogenic, intermittent fasting and 5:2. For most people these are chosen purely to achieve weight loss, with never a thought about how these diets may be impacting their nutritional status or health.

Let’s be clear: weight does not equate to health.

So what has this got to do with snacking?

Quite a lot. Most of these diets do not consider the importance of the time intervals between each and every meal. It is not simply about what you eat. How often you eat matters too.

Read on or you can watch/listen here:

Why Insulin Matters When You Snack

Every time you eat, your body will release insulin.

It does vary depending on the makeup of the meal, with the greater carbohydrate content creating the greater insulin release, but insulin is the master regulator of protein and fat metabolism too.

And when insulin rises, it encourages fat storage and inhibits fat burning.

Just a small rise in insulin from a small snack will inhibit the body’s ability to utilise fat for fuel. And it will stimulate the storage of fat from glucose.

This is why I encourage people to think not only about what they eat, but also how frequently they are eating throughout the day.

Eating Less Frequently

The further back we look, not only did we eat less, but we ate less frequently.

Our body has not evolved to cope with how we eat today. And this, of course, is driving disease: obesity, Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer risk.

If we go far back in time, we lived with a scarcity of food and had to hunt for it.

Whilst we no longer have to hunt for food, we can return to how our grandparents and great-grandparents ate, which was a focus on three “solid” meals a day.

When we achieve a gap of four or more hours between our meals, it enables the body to adapt to burn fuel. It can burn fuel derived from fats and no longer relies on glucose.

It becomes very efficient at doing this and becomes more resilient and stronger. It no longer “panics” when glucose is not readily available and stays “calm” as it “knows what to do”.

I can now run a 10K in a morning “fasted” state as my body has learnt to burn stored fat as a fuel source.

I do not recommend doing this until you have started to adapt your eating habits!

Clearing Up the Debris

There is another reason I like to create longer gaps between meals.

With these longer periods without eating and processing food, the body starts to tidy up worn-out cells and cellular waste.
Think of old radiators that need flushing out!

Your body can flush out debris throughout the day, keeping everything running efficiently.

This process is known as autophagy. It has generated a lot of interest for its ability to lower inflammation, reduce oxidative stress and in turn have a positive impact on disease risk including neurodegeneration like dementia.

So for me, eating less frequently is about much more than simply controlling calories or weight.

I’ve also looked at how time-restricted eating may support cognitive health and dementia risk in this article.

Surely Intermittent Fasting Does This?

To a degree it does.

But it only works effectively if what and how you eat during the eight to ten-hour window follows the rules.

Intermittent fasting is not simply about restricting your eating window and then eating whatever you like during that time. What you eat and the balance of your meals still matters.

I’ve written more about my approach to intermittent fasting and how to do it in a healthy way.

How to Avoid Snacking Between Meals

So how do you actually put this into practice?

I recommend three meals a day which are well balanced with protein, fats and a large portion of non-starchy vegetables.

When the balance of these is right, you will find you can sail seamlessly from each main meal to the next without the need for a snack.

Protein is particularly important for creating a balanced meal, and I’ve written more about how much protein you need.

Healthy fats also form an important part of that balance. You can read more about why healthy fats are important.

To start with, the gap between lunch and dinner may be too long.

Always aim for four to five hours without food, but if required, add in a small balanced snack. A small handful of plain nuts is a good choice.

You may also find you can extend the length of time between your evening meal and breakfast. Some days you may skip breakfast, and this is fine.

But always consider the gap between your meals.

The Bottom Line

I cannot emphasise enough how important it is to our health to eat less frequently. Regular snacking can also substantially increase our intake of ultra-processed foods.

It is far more than a weight issue.

It is about giving the body time between meals, helping it adapt to different fuel sources and creating an eating pattern that supports your long-term health and longevity.

Start by looking at your three main meals.

Are they giving you enough protein, healthy fats and non-starchy vegetables to keep you satisfied until the next meal?
If not, that is the first place I would begin.

Caroline x

Image of Caroline Peyton, Expert Nutritionist and Gut Health Expert — Caroline is a Professional Nutritionist, Naturopath based in Wiltshire.

FAQs

Why should I avoid snacking between meals?

Every time you eat, your body releases insulin. Caroline recommends creating gaps between meals so the body has more opportunity to utilise stored fat for fuel rather than constantly processing incoming food.

How long should I leave between meals?

Caroline recommends aiming for around four to five hours between meals where possible.

What should I eat to help stop snacking?

Caroline recommends three well-balanced meals containing protein, healthy fats and a large portion of non-starchy vegetables.

What if I am hungry between lunch and dinner?

If the gap feels too long, Caroline recommends having a small balanced snack, such as a small handful of plain nuts.

Is intermittent fasting the same as avoiding snacking?

To a degree, but Caroline believes intermittent fasting only works effectively when what and how you eat during the eating window also follows the right principles.

Can I skip breakfast?

Caroline says that some days you may find you naturally extend the gap between your evening meal and breakfast and skip breakfast. The important point is to consider the overall gap between meals.

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