I recently had the pleasure of attending “The Power of Snacking,” an organized panel discussion focusing on trends in women and snacking.  The panel included six women with varied expertise and views, all with backgrounds in diet, health, nutrition, psychology, fitness, food studies, and more.  Women uniting to recognize and influence society’s mindset on snacking.  “Women should balance their focus on health with the pleasure of eating – eating only for health is missing the point,” (The Power of Snacking Report.)

The panel included Keri Gans, Sarah-Jane Bedwell, Amy Bentley, Tara Dellolacono Thies, Rachel Maguire and was lead by Alicia Ybarbo and MaryAnn Zoellner from the TODAY show.  The fabulous event, hosted by The Institute for the Future (IFTF) and LUNA, opened my eyes to unique views and trends on women and snacking, allowed me to meet some very interesting women, and, of course, taste a LUNA Bar or two!

Snacking was once a means of survival, but now, at times, it can be associated with guilt, remorse, a lack of will power, etc.  The point is to rid that “I was bad” demon that may visit you after a cookie, or two, or three… In reality, snacking can and should be a very positive experience, allowing us to energize our bodies and minds, add extra nutrients to our diet, and delay comfortably until meal-time.   For athletes, and even super busy women alike, snacking is a must; fueling our ability to function throughout the day.

The various viewpoints on the panel allowed for the multi-faceted discussion to shift from basic nutritional analyses, such as the fact that snacking adds calories and should therefore be offset with less-caloric meals, to trends in weight, obesity, media, culture, marketing, family-life, and more.  The positive trending behaviors outlined include; adopting more lifestyle-appropriate eating patterns, eating with deeper enjoyment, finding ways to sort through the deluge of information about food and health, designing customized feedback loops for information and cues, preparing snacks more creatively, and understanding bodies at a finer level of granularity. What does this mean?  Our efforts to be more in-tune with our bodies, our cravings, hunger, feelings, and connections.  If we’re going to snack more, we’ve got to do it right.

So, who’s responsible for the increase in snacking? Working women, women in their 20’s, and empty nesters are today’s biggest “snackers.”  Think about it: if you spend dinner-time at your desk, in a classroom, at happy hour with other 20-somethings, or you no longer have a family at home to cook for, snacking’s the obvious option.  On the flip-side, are we then cheating ourselves of the deeper psychological correlations of meal-time (catching up with friends, making eye contact with our spouse from across the table, or the pride of tasting a meal made from scratch)?

As a fitness editor with a Social Work degree, (yup, I’m all over the place!) I was so captivated when the discussion shifted to deeper psychological roots of women, children, and the family structure.  All over the world, holidays, celebrations, and ceremonial passages incorporate food, large, traditional meals, or even lack-there-of for certain fasting holidays.  Meals aren’t going out of style anytime soon.

Ever thought about how children learn the “rules of civilization” at mealtimes?  They learn how to socialize, ask and answer questions about their day, sit still, use their manners, use utensils, swallow then talk, wait until served, not fight with your brother, remain patient until excused, help with prep and clean-up, and so on. That’s a lot of life lessons!  More importantly, dinner-time is often the only time of day that the family spends all together.  As kids grow into young adults, it’s been proven that teens that have regular meals at home do better in school, stay out of trouble, and have better overall physical health as well.  So, does this all mean that meals are, in fact, better than snacking?!

Not necessarily.  The right combination is the trick, and yes, that may be different for everyone.  The consensus is that women are snacking; we’re busier than ever, and snacking keeps us going.

“Women are no longer forcing their days to accommodate traditional eating patterns, but rather are choosing to snack at times that are most appropriate for them…they value their snack time immensely – whenever it may be – and view it as a way to escape, rejuvenate, and enjoy being with friends,” (The Power of Snacking Report.)

To promote healthy snacking, LUNA is giving away a box of their brand new Peanut Honey Pretzel Bars! I’ve tried ‘em and they’re sweet, salty, and delicious! To enter, just leave a comment below on snacking, something you found interesting in the article above, or leave some LUNA love!  Snack on, ladies!