Trying to eat healthier, (edit for me this means lower sugar, less carbs, more protein) and it seems like everything that is sweet, sweet-ish, or a snack but also sold as healthy has peanuts or is peanuts. I'm not allergic to it, but I am tired of peanut butter cookies, peanuts in a snack bar, peanuts on their own, peanuts in a snack mix.
Peanuts are unbelievably inexpensive to grow, and are a solid option for nutrition and people tend to enjoy the flavor. So, y'know, sorry to all the allergic people.
Yeah, they grow kind of like a potato as nodules on the roots of an annual plant that's easy to grow as a field crop. As opposed to tree nuts that grow on trees that take a long time to produce, need regular maintenance, need lots of irrigation to produce well, and are more difficult to mechanically harvest.
The two groups are drastically different in what it takes to grow and process them.
I was in a Thai restaurant once and overheard a woman actually say to the waiter "I'm allergic to peanuts, is there anything on the menu you'd recommend". I left shortly afterwards so didn't see if she died by breathing the air in there...
Costco sells bags of roasted pumpkin seeds that scratch a similar itch for me. Not quite as cheap as sunflower seeds, but about 10 bucks for a 2lb bag that lasts quite awhile.
My protip for sunflower seeds with the shell: get a jar/bottle with a smallish opening. Transfer the sunflower seeds to the jar/bottle. Then you can easily pour one at a time directly into your mouth. I have a cup for putting the shells in. It's a great passive snack while working and I don't need to get any of the dust on my hands from the shells (e.g. salt or flavor powder).
Shops here used to (probably still do...) sell them seasoned with various flavourings, but the chilli ones were fantastic if you like that sort of thing. The extra flavour makes them feel more substantial, and it'd be easy to do yourself.
Pumpkin seeds are great, too, but to get the good ones that are still in the shell and also not completely coated in salt can be a little challenging and expensive. I get them from Amazon from time to time when I feel like splurging outside of pumpkin season.
Raw fruits are low-carb, good for you, snackable, affordable, and sweet. Apples, bananas, tangerines, cherries, grapes. They’re fucking delicious. And best of all, no peanuts.
Idk, in my experience a lot of apples are high in sugar. Gotta stick with the more tart ones to keep the sugar content down. Cherries are the ones I don't thing about when I'm shopping for snacks, thanks for the reminder!
Whole, modern, domesticated fruits do contain quite a bit of sugar, but that sugar is locked up in fiber. There are lots of anti-sugar crusaders that consider whole fruit to be a "gimme." Gary Taubes (Good Calories, Bad Calories) and Robert Lustig (Sugar: the Bitter Truth) are two that leap to mind.
Raw veggies are a good one with less sugar. "Baby" carrots, mini bell peppers, mini cucumbers are all great, easy options to keep on hand for munching on.
I’ve noticed the same thing but fortunately I still am crazy for peanuts. An interesting observation though and now you have me fearing getting sick of them.
Absolutely. Kind of surprising considering how common peanut allergies are, but they're in all kinds of things. And almost every package of mixed nuts is like 60% peanuts.
I have no idea, Canadian here and I can eat peanuts with every meal and still love them. When working on a asphalt crew I always had a bag in my pocket. I feel sorry for the allergic person who runs their rubber tire roller, steam roller, plate packer...
Oh well, some multimillionare assholes problem now lol
Not exactly the same, but as a type 1 diabetic with a nut allergy, I feel you with how annoying it is that all the good low carb snacks seem to be packed with peanuts, cashews, and/or almonds.
Fortunately for me, I like dark chocolate or I'd be completely SOL.
And yes, lower carbs is what I'm going for. Not fully low carb, but I find that I do better through the day when my snacks are high protein and my meals are balanced.
FYI, pineapple and watermelon are high on the glycemic index, while most other fruit is considered medium or low. Further, dried pineapple is usually sugared. Most whole fruits, and especially berries, can be eaten in moderate quantity by people watching their blood sugar.
unless you're willing to make your own jerky, there really isnt anything on the market like that. low/no sugar + low/no carbs + high protein is a niche market.
Hmm, jerky. Yeah, the cheap stuff is just candy with questionable beef in it, the good stuff is either expensive or home made... That might be the snacking goal to strive for, home made jerky so it can be good and good for me.
My best advice is to find a brand of vanilla whey protein that you like. Preferably something thats advertised for "lean mass" (check the fats and carbs... buy a small container for trial purposes)
You want your morning pick me up? Add a few espresso shots mix it on skim milk and its now a vanilla latte that can sub in for breakfast.
Got some strawberries handy? Its now a strawberry shake.
Post workout protein bomb? (Yes I know you're over peanuts but Im not) 2 scoops of protein, 1 scoop of peanut butter powder, 1 banana, 1 egg and about a shot glass of maple syrup and mix on whole milk... its a reasonably large calorie hit but its also 50% of my daily protein in one go.
Chilli Chocolate? Obviously this one is "to taste" but add fresh chillis and either Cocoa powder or chocolate syrup (depending on how good you want to be)
Id also say that most people in general who try to "eat healthy" by intuition are also terrible at it. I wholeheartedly believe everyone should try a month of weighing their food and tracking their macros. If you start making regular better choices and tracking not just daily but weekly, you would be surprised at what you can fit into a "healthy" diet.
Nuts by themselves can be a good snack. I get smoked almonds and theyre really good on their own. Chia seeds, fruit and yogurt are good together. Nutritional yeast is good on buttered toast and anything cheesy. Sliced carrots in vinegar, dill and garlic are addictive, have no added salt and are good for you. Hummus and veggies of your choice are also good. (We get the spicy kind)