Snacking Can
RUIN YOUR HEALTH
Back in your parents or grandparents time, snacking wasn’t as prevalent. Then in the ’70s, fast food was introduced and snacks exploded in popularity because of their convenience.
We’ve all heard that snacking is good because it keeps your blood sugar up. That’s a myth.
Elevated blood sugars are exactly why snacking can wreak havoc on your brain, digestive system, colon, and more.
Plus, it can trigger you to accumulate fat instead of burn fat.
It goes without saying that if you’re eating more food throughout the day, you’re probably consuming more calories, which leads to weight gain. But, snacking is much more dangerous than that.
Here are 5 reasons why snacking can ruin your health…
1. CAUSES INFLAMMATION
After a meal, inflammation occurs for a short time to protect our immune system. This after-meal inflammation is only a problem when it’s occurring all day long. Chronic low-grade inflammation is being linked to many lifestyle diseases, including diabetes and heart disease.
2. YOUR BODY NEEDS SOME DOWNTIME
Our bodies respond more positively to fewer, larger meals. A study in 2014 concluded that eating two larger meals a day reduces body weight, fasting plasma glucose, and our liver fat content.
Grazing throughout the day doesn’t give your body time to complete the process of digestion, causing the digestive system to work in overdrive.
3. SNACKING RAISES INSULIN
Snacking keeps your insulin levels elevated, which makes your body more readily store fat. Whenever you put something in your mouth, whether it’s a handful of almonds, a piece of chocolate, or an apple, your body secretes insulin. The purpose of insulin is to deliver sugar from your blood stream to your cells, then to your liver or muscles for storage. However, anything that’s not needed is then stored as fat.
4. BEWARE! LATE NIGHT SNACKERS STORE MORE CALORIES
If you’re like me, you save your snacking for evening hours. Bad idea! Why? Studies indicate that snacking at night stores more fat. This makes perfect sense on a practical level, because calories need to go somewhere, and chances are they’re going to end up around your midsection.
5. YOUR BRAIN GETS MORE SLUGGISH
Notice how your brain functions when there’s food in the stomach, versus how it feels when the stomach is empty. It’s clear to see that your brain works best on an empty stomach! If you’re regularly snacking, your body is using energy to help the digestive system, so neither your brain nor your body are able to function optimally.
Mark Sisson, a guest on The Art of Living, is the author of Two Meals a Day. In this episode, he shares why stopping the snacking cycle is excellent for your health, an he offers the tools to unleash your body’s genetically pre-programmed superpower that gives you the ability to burn a variety of fuel sources (especially stored fat) at any given time.
