Granola or muesli? Nutritionist reveals the healthiest and gives suggestions

ANDalthough the main meals such as lunch and dinner have a great weight on digestive health, the snacks and snacks it makes throughout the day are also of utmost importance.

With speciality in conditions such as obesity/low weight; diabetes and intestinal diseases, the nutritionist Raquel Oliveira of the Hospital Units of the Lusíadas Group, clarifies the need to have several meals throughout the day.

One of the reasons for this concerns the effectiveness of weight control: “If a person does not eat lunch in the middle of the morning or in the middle of the afternoon, he ends up not controlling so well what he will eat or can even eat twice as much as he needed in the main meal.”

Alongside this, the food expert ensures that meals but small also “help to have more energy throughout the day and make sure that you are not so hungry in the main meal”.

Granola or muesli?

To simplify snacks it is common to resort to cereals and classic and apparently healthy options such as granola and muesli. However, there is something you need to consider:

“ The muesli they are also a good option, but we must take into account fat and sugar, because, although healthy, have more fat because of the dried fruits”, says the nutritionist.

With the granola, in turn, “you have to be careful, because often the granola you buy in the supermarket it has a lot of sugar and fat and it turns out it's not as healthy as it looks. If it is made at home, it is much more controlled”, suggests.

“ The only question is that we must always be very careful about the quantity, because, since they are very rich in fat, (dried fruits) have a very high calorie value ", warns.

Alternatively, it recommends options with oatmeal or oatmeal flakes, as well as pancakes, a glass of lean milk or a vegetable drink without added sugar. “ All these are good alternatives to take from home, get satisfied and make a healthy snack”say it.

What else can these snacks include?

Whether for mid-morning or mid-afternoon snack may include “a portion of milk, such as lean milk, natural thin yogurt or aromas”, there is also “the hyperprotein versions, which are yogurts or puddings with little fat and little sugar and more protein, which are very satiating and very pleasant in terms of flavor”.

In addition, according to the expert it should be added a piece of fruit, “which can even be an apple, apple or pear mashed for a change”, as well as a major source of carbohydrates, like a slice of whole bread, mixture or rye, corn biscuits or rice.

Here are some ideas for a healthy snack

• A piece of fruit, a slice of bread or half bread with lean fresh cheese or curd;
• A lean natural yogurt (or even hyperprotein) with fruit and oatmeal flakes;
• Oatmeal with fruit and protein;
• Pancakes and thin yogurt;
• Yogurt with dried fruits or yogurt with oatmeal and dried fruits (both muesli and granola are two alternatives)

What should you begin to exclude from your snacks?

For the nutritionist, a healthy snack must not contain processed products, pastries or packaged cakes. “Sugars and soft drinks should also be excluded, as well as anything that is very sugary cookies,” he adds.