Do office ladies who sit for long hours have the habit of snacking? The editor and colleagues have a drawer full of snacks, and in this issue, let's share these essential healthy office snacks together!
1. Peanuts
Nutritional Highlights of Peanuts:
The rich linoleic acid in nuts helps ensure smooth blood circulation to the brain; they are also rich in protein and vegetable oil, which can satisfy hunger when your stomach rumbles. Office workers who are used to sitting for long hours might consider preparing peanuts, walnuts, almonds, and other nuts. Prolonged sitting at a desk significantly increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases, while regularly eating nuts like walnuts can greatly reduce this risk.
Consumption Principle:
Peanuts are also high in fat, so be mindful of your intake to avoid weight gain.
2. Seaweed (Nori)
Nutritional Highlights of Seaweed:
Seaweed contains a variety of vitamins and minerals, with a particularly high iodine content. Regular consumption can prevent dull skin, dry hair, and slow growth caused by iodine deficiency. It can also reduce fat accumulation in the body and help prevent high blood pressure and coronary heart disease.
Consumption Principle:
This thin snack won't make you fat because it contains almost no fat and has very few calories!
3. Dried Tofu
Nutritional Highlights of Dried Tofu:
The outstanding nutritional benefit of dried tofu is its high calcium content. Its greatest feature is its balanced nutrition, with adequate amounts of protein, fat, and carbohydrates—neither too much nor too little of any. According to measurements, every 100 grams of dried tofu contains 336 calories, 731 milligrams of calcium, and less than 16 grams of fat, so you can eat more without gaining weight.
Consumption Principle:
If you miss a meal, eating some dried tofu is a great way to satisfy both your craving and hunger. A single vacuum-sealed pack of five-spice dried tofu weighs about 20 grams. Eating two or three packs as a snack can supplement 40% of your daily calcium requirement.
4. Beef Jerky
Nutritional Highlights of Beef Jerky and Braised Beef:
Braised beef or beef jerky is rich in protein, contains some heme iron, and is also high in zinc, selenium, and various B vitamins. It can nourish the spleen and stomach, strengthen muscles and bones, and replenish qi and blood. Compared to small packs of braised beef, beef jerky contains less water and salt. Additionally, the nutritional value of braised beef is roughly half that of beef jerky of the same weight, but its sodium content is twice as high.
Consumption Principle:
These two snacks are suitable to eat when your stomach is empty.
5. Ready-to-Eat Fruit and Vegetable Chips
Nutritional Highlights of Ready-to-Eat Fruit and Vegetable Chips:
Pineapple chips and banana chips, which were once all the rage, are now considered the least healthy option among ready-to-eat fruit and vegetable chips, as they are relatively high in energy and sugar. Nowadays, apples, carrots, and even shiitake mushrooms and ginger can be processed into delicious ready-to-eat snacks using low-temperature vacuum drying technology, which minimizes nutritional loss in the produce.
Consumption Principle:
Eating too much is not beneficial, as fresh fruits and vegetables are always the best source for supplementation.
6. Preserved Plums (Huamei)
Nutritional Highlights of Preserved Plums and Olives:
Both preserved plums and olives can relieve coughs, reduce phlegm, and promote salivation to quench thirst. The organic acids in plums and olives promote the secretion of digestive juices, aiding digestion. Therefore, they are suitable to eat between meals or after a meal, but not when you are extremely hungry. Preserved plums and olives can also freshen your breath, making them an indispensable part of the office snack list!
Consumption Principle:
2-3 pieces per day, to be consumed after meals.
7. Dark Chocolate
Nutritional Highlights of Dark Chocolate:
Among all types of chocolate, dark chocolate has the lowest sugar and fat content. After being converted into glucose, it enters the bloodstream and releases energy slowly, keeping blood sugar levels from dropping to fasting levels for 2-3 hours. Therefore, eating a piece of chocolate when you're hungry is far more effective than cookies or cakes.
Consumption Principle:
For those with a 5-6 hour interval between meals, eating two pieces of dark chocolate (2cm x 4cm in size) about 3 hours after the first meal can quickly relieve hunger.
8. Coffee
Nutritional Highlights of Coffee and Milk:
Some people cannot drink milk or simply dislike its taste. However, it's hard to overlook the nutritional value of milk, which is rich in highly absorbable calcium. Some people enjoy coffee but choose three-in-one instant coffee packets, which are a blend of hydrogenated vegetable oil, white sugar, and coffee powder. The hydrogenated oil brings trans fats that are harmful to cardiovascular health, and you also end up consuming a large amount of sugar.
Consumption Principle:
Prepare a glass of low-fat milk (with 2/3 less fat than whole milk), add a small spoonful of coffee powder, and sweeten it with a safe sweetener like Tai Gu sugar or Ba'er sugar.
9. Green Tea
Nutritional Highlights of Green Tea:
The caffeine in tea not only helps you stay alert, but the vitamin C, vitamin E, and especially the polyphenols it contains have anti-radiation effects. For office workers who are "inseparable" from their computers, radiation is a concerning "by-product."
Consumption Principle:
When you feel irritable and don't want to drink plain water, or when you have a craving for cola, try substituting it with a cup of clear tea.
10. Oatmeal
Nutritional Highlights of Oatmeal:
Oatmeal provides energy from complex carbohydrates and also delivers soluble or insoluble dietary fiber, helping to balance your daily nutritional structure. When you're feeling down due to work, you might as well steep a packet of oatmeal. Its high fiber content slows down digestion, continuously supplying carbohydrates to the bloodstream, helping your body get a steady stream of energy and keeping blood sugar levels high, which in turn prevents dizziness, memory loss, and decreased work efficiency. Additionally, supplement with more vitamins related to brain and nerve metabolism, such as B vitamins, which are abundant in brown rice and whole wheat. Raw oatmeal that requires a long cooking time is definitely not suitable for the office. Instant pure oatmeal has been pre-cooked and can be ready in just 2-3 minutes in the microwave. Some people find pure oatmeal too bland to swallow; in that case, you can mix it with milk and honey. From a nutritional perspective, minimally processed whole grain products have the highest nutritional value.
Consumption Principle:
If you miss a meal, consider having a bowl of oatmeal porridge.