Snacks.  If there’s anything that ruins weight loss goals more, you’ll have to tell me of one.

Snacks are almost impossible to avoid, because after all, when between-meal hunger pangs come calling—and who among us doesn’t experience them now and again?— you want to satisfy them with an especially tasty treat, be it sweet or salty.

Snack companies like Nabisco, Pepperidge Farm, SnackWells and Frito-Lay are smart.  They know that people want to satisfy their sweet or salty tooth without feeling guilty.  So, they came up with what turned out to be a genius invention:  the 100-calorie snack pack.

These little snack packs provide the same taste and flavor of a full-sized bag of Cheetos or an entire can of Pringles, but in a smaller, portion-controlled package.

Pure genius, right?  Well, only if “genius” is measured in dollars earned, not pounds lost.

If it’s all about dollars, then yes, the 100-calorie snack pack was pure genius.  For example, in 2006, snack sales rose just three percent compared to 2005.  But if you factor in the 100-calorie packs, sales rose 28 percent!  In 2007 alone, 100-calorie snacks snapped up over $200 million in revenue!

But if “genius” is measured in pounds lost, it was a terrible idea.  In fact, it did the opposite of what was intended.

I say this because according to a study published in the Journal of Consumer Research, 100-calorie packs encourage, rather than discourage, snacking.

Doesn’t make sense, right?  The whole idea of 100-calorie packs is to give snackers a stop sign:  Once the bag is empty, the snack break’s over.  But as it turns out, snackers are blowing right through those “stop signs.”  Why?  Because they’re no longer concerned about portion control.

With normal sized bags of Doritos or full-sized cans of Pringles, people are more aware of how much they’re eating.  But with 100-calorie snack bags, people underestimate how much 100 calories is and wind up having more than one pack when snack attacks strike.

So once again, the snack industry is smiling.  Smiling because they’re selling less product, yet profiting more because their 100-calorie snack packs cost as much as their full-sized bags.  And as the aforementioned study found, the 100-calorie snacks don’t even do what they’re supposed to:  help people eat less.

An unhealthy snack now and again is fine, but for lasting weight loss, there’s no such thing as a snacking short cut.

The hungry horrors are unpredictable, so surround yourself with foods that you can’t cheat with.  Stock up your vegetable bin with fresh carrots, celery and cucumber.  Buy healthy dips like hummus, taboule, or some fresh bruschetta.  And purchase fruits as they become in-season, like oranges when the snow falls, strawberries when the spring springs, melons when the days grow longer, and apples when the leaves change color.

Sources
nytimes.com
bio-medicine.org