Many foods that make good snacks don't taste sweet but do have added sugar. If you're looking for healthy foods with less sugar to snack on, the U.S. Department of Agriculture suggests examining package labels and avoiding those with added sugars. These include the obvious sugar, brown sugar, raw sugar and the less obvious invert sugar. Syrups such as molasses, honey, malt syrup, corn syrup and high-fructose corn syrup are also added sugars.
Additional sweeteners may be listed in the ingredients as dextrose, glucose, maltose, sucrose or lactose. Fruit juice concentrates are sugars as well. Alternative snack foods should do their job---providing energy from protein---and taste appealing. The Mayo Clinic suggests grain, nut and seed food sources as those are likely to have less sugar and high nutritional value.
No-Prep Snacks
Out-of-hand items make good snack foods on the go. Nuts and seeds have significant protein, vitamins and minerals. They are also caloric, so 1-oz. serving sizes should be the limit for almonds, cashews, pistachios, walnuts and hazelnuts. Roasted soybeans and peanuts are also healthy foods with strong protein and calorie content.
Lots of sports teams pass time on the bench by eating nutritious sunflower and pumpkin seed kernels. Other finger foods include canned Vienna sausages, beef jerky, string cheese (mozzarella) packets and peanut butter crackers with less sugar. Packaged pretzels, popcorn and some cereals have no or low added sugar.
Recycled Snacks
Last night's dinner ingredients may become today's non-sweet snack foods. Pork, beef or lamb chops, fish, chicken or other meaty entrees make rich small-portion snacks. Leftover pizza is good hot or cold.
Healthy foods such as rice, noodles, macaroni and ravioli make filling protein snacks, alone or as salads dressed with oil and vinegar. Leftover broccoli, mushrooms and onions can become part of a quick omelet or scramble.
Some Assembly Required
A small effort in assembling snack foods will pay off in less sugar in your diet. Pairing whole grain products with another protein source is an effective formula, resulting in non-sweet snacks such as bagels and peanut butter, multigrain crackers and tuna, and quesadillas made with tortillas and cheese.
Dippers are fun snacks. Healthy foods such as cauliflower, zucchini, broccoli, celery, and mushrooms complement plain yogurt or nonfat ranch dressing. For more non-sweet snacks, hummus (made from protein-rich chick peas and sesame tahini) and Greek tzaziki (made from shredded cucumbers and yogurt) can also be served with these vegetables, pita bread or whole grain crackers.
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