10 Best Healthy Snacks | UK Dietitian Reviewed
With more of us in the UK becoming aware of our health, there is a demand for tasty and budget-friendly morsels that are just as satisfying as their less nutritious counterparts. Read on for our guide on how to choose the best snacks for your lifestyle with advice from dietitian Jo Travers, and our top picks on Amazon, Tesco, and Asda for weight loss, or just a quick energising snacks on the go. We guarantee they are as delicious as they are healthy!
Quick List - Top Healthy Snacks
Hippeas
A Natural Cheesy Crisp Alternative With All the Taste
Deliciously Ella
A Great Tasting Unprocessed Energy Boost
Author of The Bone Strength Plan and a professional, evidenced-based nutritionist in London. Jo has carried out over 1500 hours of one-to-one consultations with more than 600 clients, as well as the additional hours of workshops, research, and media work with the BBC, Channel 4, The Islam channel and more.
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With Specialist Consultation From Dietitian Jo Travers
Jo Travers, author of The Bone Strength Plan is a professional, evidenced-based nutritionist in London. She has carried out over 1500 hours of one-to-one consultations with more than 600 clients, as well as the additional hours of workshops, research, and media work with the BBC, Channel 4, The Islam Channel, and more.
You can find her comprehensive catalogue of courses and guides for everything nutrition-related on her website, as well as absolutely delicious recipe ideas on her Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
How to Choose a Healthy Snack in the UK – Buying Guide
The Healthiest Snacks Contain Mostly Natural Ingredients
Mindless snacking can lead to weight gain and other health problems, but resisting the biscuits and crisps is no easy feat when you’re ready to tear open your lunchbox at 10am. Replacing empty calorie-laden snacks with those made from wholefoods ingredients can often be just as satisfying, and help you avoid the sugar crash.
Look for snacks with ingredients high on the list that you can recognise and pronounce, such as grains, fruit, vegetables or familiar protein sources such as nuts. They will naturally be higher in vitamins, fibre and minerals, and some will even get you on your way to your 5 a day.
Steer clear of those with additives and processed ingredients. Some snacks may appear to be healthy if they are marketed as such, but even these can often be bulked out with fake ingredients that aren’t as good for us in the long run as the real thing.
Eating lots of processed food is associated with health problems like diabetes, heart disease and cancer, so although often convenient in the moment, processed snacks can actually cause long-term health problems if you eat them a lot.
However, there are lots of genuinely healthy choices available to choose from now. Planning your snacks in advance is useful because you will have something healthy to hand when you are hungry and can prevent a trip to the biscuit tin!
Read the Label to Find Snacks With the Best Nutrients For Your Needs
Snacks With Protein and Complex Carbs Will Fill You Up for Longer
Complex carbohydrates are another filling snack component, as they are digested slowly and high in fibre, which will boost your energy and keep you satiated until your next meal. This will be especially beneficial for dieters.
These complex carbs are mostly found in foods containing oats or other whole grains, pulses, nuts and fruit and veggies. Note that their amount isn’t too important unless you are limiting carbohydrates, so focus on snacks with these particular types of carbs rather than how much they contain.
Ultimately our bodies need all the different food groups to be healthy and getting a combination of a couple of food groups in a snack is more likely to solve your hunger and keep you going for longer rather than just eating one food group. Something with fibre like fruit or oats, and some protein is a winning combination
Choose Snacks Low in Sugar and Sweetened Naturally for a Sweet Fix
If you have a sweet tooth in the afternoon or after a meal, opt for snacks that contain natural sources of sweeteners for a smart swap. These could be dried fruits or unrefined sugars such as maple syrup. As well as being healthier, they won’t give you the “highs and lows” you feel after eating regular sugary snacks, which can be counterproductive at work or school.
Snacks with low or natural sugars will also be ideal for kid’s lunchboxes, as they will often taste just as good as a packet of sweets and still feel like a treat for them. Of course, a little sugar won’t do us much harm, but try to stick to snacks with around 5g per 100g. Anything with over 15g is considered “high sugar” and is best avoided unless as an occasional treat.
Sugary foods can cause blood sugar to spike which is always followed by a crash. This crash is bad for two reasons; it can mean the brain and other organs don't get the supply of glucose they need to function properly leaving us tired, and the sugar that caused the blood glucose to spike will get converted to fat and stored rather than being used.
The upshot is that you haven't benefited from the snack and are probably going to be hungry again.
Be Mindful of Fats and Salt When Picking Your Snack
Too much salt or sodium can raise our blood pressure. Whether you choose nuts, crisps, or crackers, foods with less than 140mg (0.14g) of sodium are considered low, so use this as a guideline when checking the labels to factor this into your daily intake.
Nuts and seeds are high in fat, and although these are good, heart-healthy fats in large portions can cause weight gain over time because of the high-calorie content. A small handful a day is a good amount to aim for. If this doesn't fill you up, have some fruit alongside for a really balanced snack.
Even sweet snacks can contain a considerable amount of salt by stealth! Salt is often used as a preservative as well as a flavour enhancer so can be found in snack foods with a long shelf-life.
Watch Out for High Calorie Snacks, Especially if You’re Inactive
If you are active throughout the day you could probably handle a little more than this as your energy output will be greater. But if you are fairly static in your day to day life, for example working in an office or sitting down most of the day, this would be a good guideline to follow.
Your meals are the best place to get the bulk of your calories because they tend to be more balanced and (hopefully!) eaten away from a desk so you can eat more mindfully.
Snacks on the other hand are often eaten on the go and it's easy to eat mindlessly and consume large amounts of calories without realising it! Try to give yourself a few minutes to concentrate on your snack so you get the most of it and don't over-eat without meaning to.
For Consistent Health Success, Go for Snacks That You Know You Enjoy
If you hunt down snacks that are healthier versions of your favourite treats, such as low-calorie crisps, plain popcorn, unsalted nuts or bars made with fruit, you will be more likely to stick to your new healthy habits.
Eating should be enjoyable and a welcome break in your day. If you resent the snack you have chosen it's easy to become rebellious! Remember a snack can be a small portion of anything, so if you have some leftovers from last night's dinner that aren't enough for lunch, that will make a perfect tasty snack.
10 Best Healthy Snacks in the UK
Products | Image | Click to purchase | Key features | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Hippeas Organic Chickpea Puffs Take it Cheesy ｜22g 24 Pack | | A Natural Cheesy Crisp Alternative With All the Taste | |
2 | KIND Dark Chocolate Nuts & Sea Salt Bar ｜40g 12 Pack | | Simple and Natural Chocolate Nut Heaven | |
3 | Propercorn Sweet & Salty Popcorn｜24 Pack | | A Healthy Corn Nibble With a Divine Flavour | |
4 | Deliciously Ella Cacao and Almond Energy Balls｜40g 12 Pack | | A Great Tasting Unprocessed Energy Boost | |
5 | Indie Bay Spelt & Smokin’ BBQ Pretzel Bites｜26g 14 Pack | | A Crunchy Low Calorie Alternative to Crisps with Wholefood Ingredients | |
6 | Eat Real Quinoa Cream and Chive Chips｜ 30g 12 Pack | | Your New Favourite All Natural Healthier Crisp | |
7 | Graze Veggie Protein Power｜28g 9 Pack | | A Yummy Alternative to Salted Nuts | |
8 | BEAR Strawberry Pure Fruit YoYo’s｜20g 18 Pack | | Best for Kids and Candy Cravers | |
9 | Nairn's Super Seeded Organic Oatcakes｜200g | | Additive Free Crunchy Crackers Packed With Nutritious Seeds | |
10 | Trek Original Oat Protein Flapjack｜16 Pack | | An All Natural Traditional Tasting Flapjack Made Healthy |
HippeasOrganic Chickpea Puffs Take it Cheesy ｜ 22g 24 Pack
A Natural Cheesy Crisp Alternative With All the Taste
This fab company is environmentally friendly and supports the African farmers they source from. Perfect for kids and adults alike, whether you are avoiding allergens or just want something gorgeously cheesy to munch on. Yum!
Simple and Natural Chocolate Nut Heaven
For under 200 calories, you can’t miss these delicious bars as an alternative to processed chocolate or energy bars.
A Healthy Corn Nibble With a Divine Flavour
The corn used is a great source of whole grain fibre and is surprisingly filling. There are other yummy flavours to try including savoury versions, if you prefer something salty.
Deliciously EllaCacao and Almond Energy Balls ｜ 40g 12 Pack
A Great Tasting Unprocessed Energy Boost
Whilst dates are a great fibre source and energy supply, they are high in sugars, albeit unrefined ones. The price is a little high, but the ingredients are good quality and you’ll be doing both your body and taste buds a favour by adding them to your snacking repertoire!
Indie BaySpelt & Smokin’ BBQ Pretzel Bites ｜ 26g 14 Pack
A Crunchy Low Calorie Alternative to Crisps with Wholefood Ingredients
You can feel even better about eating these scrumptious bites, as they donate a portion of their profits to charity. They are also only 100 calories, so would be great for school, work and maybe even with a glass of wine in the evening!
Eat RealQuinoa Cream and Chive Chips ｜ 30g 12 Pack
Your New Favourite All Natural Healthier Crisp
The calories are fine for each packet, but unfortunately they are fairly high in salt and fat. However, they should be fine as part of a balanced diet as they’re too tasty to miss!
A Yummy Alternative to Salted Nuts
With added protein and fibre from the beans, they offer a lower-fat alternative to salted nuts, as well as a nutrition boost. They are a little expensive, but very handy and tasty if you like a savoury snack.
Best for Kids and Candy Cravers
They come with little cards for kids to collect, in case they seem sceptical of their new sweetie replacement! There are more flavours available too, and each one makes up 1 of your 5 a day.
Additive Free Crunchy Crackers Packed With Nutritious Seeds
The large box actually contains 4 packets of 5 oatcakes, so they are good for stashing in desk drawers or popping into lunchboxes. They are only 45 calories each, but if you munch too many (which is very easy to do) the fat content may be a little high for some.
An All Natural Traditional Tasting Flapjack Made Healthy
It does contain cane sugar and a mix of vegetable oils, so is on the higher end of the scale for fat and sugars. This means it would probably suit a more active person, rather than one strictly watching their intake.
Be Snack Savvy With Jo Travers' Advice on Nutritional Balance
"I like to get a couple of different food groups into a snack. It's more enjoyable and keeps me going for longer. Some examples are fruit and yogurt; cheese and oatcakes; nuts and raisins; carrots and hummus, and so on."
"Remember that snacking is an opportunity to consume some nutrients too, so if you don't quite make your five portions of fruit and veg every day, adding some to a snack can help get you there."
Other Healthy Foods to Add to Your Diet
If you're just starting on the road to healthy eating, you'll know that healthy snacks aren't the only food to introduce into your diet. However, there's no need to look further; here at mybest we already have many articles about healthy (and delicious!) foods to buy online.
Summary
Author: Natasha Dziubajlo
Top 5 Healthy Snacks
No. 1: Hippeas｜Organic Chickpea Puffs Take it Cheesy ｜22g 24 Pack
No. 2: KIND｜Dark Chocolate Nuts & Sea Salt Bar ｜40g 12 Pack
No. 3: Propercorn ｜Sweet & Salty Popcorn｜24 Pack
No. 4: Deliciously Ella｜Cacao and Almond Energy Balls｜40g 12 Pack
No. 5: Indie Bay｜Spelt & Smokin’ BBQ Pretzel Bites｜26g 14 Pack
View Full RankingThe descriptions of each product are referenced from content available on manufacturer, brand, and e-commerce sites.