Snacking was sooooo much easier when I was younger. I had no idea that twinkies, pudding cups, ding dongs and pop tarts were out to secretly kill me. Since then a million more things have been put on the grocery store shelves to lure me in and seduce me and beg me to take them home. I digress. Sometimes I feel like I need a Ph. D, in Snackology to figure out what to grab when I’m pantry prowling or fridge foraging. I’m a work in progress so don’t judge. What I’m learning is that healthy snacking is really simple… and really hard… but mostly simple when I can overcome the hard part. Follow? One thing that I know without a doubt is that if there are healthy snacks in my kitchen and I limit the not-so-healthy snacks options, then I am way more likely to be a healthy snacker. The other thing I am learning is that preparing these snacks needs to be simple or I’m less likely to have them on hand.

So let me share one snack that I always have on hand and eat every day. The cool thing is that it is small but mighty much like myself. The nut! There are other parallels between us but I don’t have time to go into them. Anyway, I always have a large container of mixed nuts (I add seeds and a little dried fruit without added sugar if I’m feeling really adventurous). To make this easy and last for a month or two I go to the nut aisle (I feel at home there for some reason). I stare at the magnificent variety and wonder, do I buy the ones richest in Vitamin E? Folate? B vitamins? Calcium? Omega 3 fatty acids? Magnesium? Fiber? Oh curse, I’ll take them all! Almonds, cashews, walnuts, pistachios, pecans, Brazil nuts, hazelnuts! Then, when I calm down, I pick up some sunflower seeds and pepitas (pumpkin seed with no shell) and some dried berries. I go home and I pour some from each into a container and churn it up and have my well-deserved snack.

Given all of that, your next vibrant habit is to become a health nut yourself and mix up a batch of nuts and seeds to have on hand when the snack attack hits. There is one caveat. One small handful (about 1/4 cup) per day is recommended because they are calorie dense. But a serving per day (even over oatmeal, yogurt or a salad) will help you lower cholesterol, reduce inflammation, protect heart health, reduce joint pain, keep your mind sharp, lower your risk of cancer, safeguard your eye health, prevent or mitigate age-related weight gain, help maintain blood sugar levels and provide BIG anti-aging powers! Oh, and one study found that consuming a serving of nuts could give you an extra 26 minutes of healthy, vibrant life! I’m pretty sure a twinkie can’t claim that.