How to Stop Snacking Constantly: Why You're Doing It and 5 Tips to Stop
Written by Isabel Vasquez RD, LDN
Is constantly reaching for chips, cookies, or popcorn between meals and before bed a source of frustration for you? If you are constantly eating between meals or grazing on snacks throughout the day, you may wonder “Why can’t I stop snacking???”.
Snacking is a normal part of eating; yet, if you find yourself snacking constantly it may be a sign that you’re not eating enough at meals, you’re eating emotionally, or you’re not getting enough sleep. Learn why you may be snacking so much and how to stop constantly snacking.
Why You’re Snacking So Much
Constant snacking can happen for a variety of reasons, ranging from not eating enough in your meals, to not getting enough quality sleep. These essentially cause your body to lack energy, which it seeks out through snacks. Here are some reasons you may be snacking so much.
You’re Not Eating Consistently
With our busy lifestyles, many people skip breakfast or work through lunch. Skipping meals like this can set you up to graze throughout the day or lean heavily on snack foods.
Essentially, your body just isn’t getting enough energy! Sometimes we can be so afraid of eating “too much” (which you may be feeling about your snacking habits) that we don’t realize that we’re not eating enough.
Eating meals consistently helps you to feel satisfied. Plus, meals are usually bigger and more nutritionally well-rounded than snacks, which helps promote satiety.
Your Meals Aren’t Well Rounded
Even if you are eating regular meals, they may not be well-rounded. When I say well-rounded, I mean that they include most or all of the food groups. Incorporating this nutritional variety ensures that your body has the energy it needs to feel good and satisfied.
One way to ensure your meals are well-rounded is to make sure they have a source of carbohydrates, fat, protein, and fiber. Each of these food groups is necessary for health including digestive health, energy, and satiety.
Satiety is key because it will ensure you feel satisfied for at least a couple of hours after eating your meal. If you don’t include all these food groups, you may notice that you become hungry soon after eating your meal, leading to more frequent snacking and less satisfaction.
Your Meals Aren’t Big Enough
In addition to adding nutritional variety, make sure you’re eating enough food!
Many people’s understanding of how much they need to eat is skewed by diet culture’s false and harmful messages. You may think that 1200 calories is enough, but it is not enough for a teen or adult! And if your meals aren’t big enough, your body will gravitate more towards snacks to get the energy it needs.
You Have Poor Sleep Hygiene
Sleep is so important for overall health, yet many Americans don’t get enough of it.
About 35% of U.S. adults report short sleep duration (sleeping less than 7 hours in a 24-hour time span, on average), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Sleep helps us recharge, so if you don’t get enough quality sleep, you’ll be running low on energy. As a result, your body will seek out other sources of energy, like snacks!
Many snack foods are also high in carbohydrates and sugar, which are quick sources of energy for our bodies. So it’s no wonder we often gravitate towards these kinds of foods when we don’t get a good night’s sleep.
You’re Restricting Your Food Intake
Are you filling up on low-calorie foods, like rice cakes, popcorn, or excess fruits and vegetables, that may lead to a false sense of fullness but aren’t truly giving your body the energy it needs?
Are you using coffee, gum, or seltzer to dull your hunger?
Are you limiting the types of foods you eat due to weight-related fears?
If you answered yes to any of those questions, then you’re likely restricting during the day in a way that could lead to more snacking, especially at night.
Your body needs calories (aka energy) to complete daily tasks, and it will do what it needs to to get said energy.
Plus, if you’re limiting certain types of foods, you may be more likely to feel out of control around them when they’re presented. For example, if you avoid carbs, it’s more likely you’ll find yourself eating the whole box of cookies when it’s around.
It’s a common way the binge-restrict cycle plays out. The binge-restrict cycle is when periods of restriction are followed by binges or periods of eating beyond comfortable fullness.
This happens because your body feels deprived due to the restriction, which causes it to load up on food when it becomes available. It’s a survival mechanism!
If you want to learn more, read our blog on the binge-restrict cycle.
You’re Using Food to Cope With Emotions
We saved emotional eating for last because in our work with clients we find that a lot of the time, constant snacking is caused by one of the reasons above rather than emotional eating.
However, if you’re eating enough and not restricting food anymore, but you’re still snacking a ton, then it may be a response to emotions.
Emotional eating is normal, but when eating is one of your only means of coping with emotions, it could be problematic because you aren’t getting to the root of the emotion.
Stress, boredom, and sadness can all lead some people to eat for comfort. Trauma can also be the underlying cause of emotional eating or binge eating.
Snacking Isn’t Necessarily A Bad Thing
Before we talk about how to stop snacking, I want you to know that snacking is NOT a bad thing!
Snacking is a normal part of eating, and it isn’t something you need to eliminate.
As weight-inclusive, anti-diet registered dietitians, we practice from an intuitive eating-based framework, which means that we encourage our clients to use their internal cues to guide eating and help them make peace with food. Part of that is connecting with your hunger and fullness cues to help guide eating.
For many people, snacking between meals is necessary to honor their hunger cues! Most people find that they need to eat something every 3–5 hours, so snacking usually helps.
For example, if you eat breakfast at 7 a.m., lunch at 12 p.m., dinner at 6 p.m., and you go to bed at 11 p.m., you may very well want a few snacks between your meals to feel energized and satisfied throughout the day.
However, if you feel out of control when snacking or you find that most of your energy intake is coming from snacks, you may want to consider why.
How to Stop Snacking All Of The Time
Eat at Regular Intervals
Not eating consistent meals can lead to lots of snacking. So, make sure to eat meals throughout the day.
As I mentioned above, most people need to eat every 3–5 hours to feel satisfied. That being said, we recommend tuning in to your hunger and fullness cues to help guide eating. You may find that some days you’re hungrier earlier or later than others.
Add More Nutrition To Your Meals and Snacks
If your meals aren’t well-rounded, you may find yourself ready to snack shortly after eating one. To ensure your meals hold you over for longer and that you get the nutrition you need, try incorporating carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber.
Some sources of carbohydrates include rice, bread, pasta, plantains, oatmeal, and tortillas.
For protein, you can add beans, nut butter, meat, fish, dairy, and eggs.
You can find dietary fat in oil, avocado, fatty meats, nuts, mayo, and sour cream.
To add fiber, try incorporating fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, and seeds into your meals.
Have Bigger Meals
Despite what diet culture says, eating enough calories is important to feeling your best and functioning well.
Our bodies do so much for us behind the scenes like breathing, pumping blood throughout our body, and regulating our body temperature even when we’re resting. We often take these things for granted even though they make up the majority of our energy needs.
So, if you’re super hungry between meals, you may need to have bigger meals to hold you over better.
If you feel lost on how to know if you’re eating enough, working with a registered dietitian can help.
Cope With Your Emotions Compassionately
If you’re confident you’re eating enough calories and incorporating nutritional variety but you’re still struggling with constant snacking, it may be worth considering your emotional state.
Are you using food as a coping mechanism?
If you notice that you’re snacking in response to tough emotions when you’re not hungry, consider how you can compassionately tend to those emotions.
Some strategies many people find helpful are journaling, positive self-talk, calling a loved one, going for a walk, or meditating. Seeking out a therapist’s support can also help.
Be More Present While Eating
The phrase “mindful eating” is trendy right now, and there’s certainly value in being more present with your food.
If you usually eat while on your phone, watching TV, working, or driving, then you’re probably not being present with your meals. As a result, it’s hard to feel satisfied or to notice your body’s hunger and fullness cues.
Of course, in our fast-paced society, it’s not usually possible to mindfully eat every meal and snack. But maybe you can commit to carving out 30 minutes for lunch one day this week to see how it goes. Maybe you can commit to checking in with yourself partway through your meals to see how your body feels.
Inviting more mindfulness allows you to notice if you are satisfied and full.
I do want to acknowledge, though, that many people end up mindlessly snacking as a result of not eating enough at other points in the day, so make sure you’re eating enough before labeling it as a mindless eating problem.
Recognize That Snacking is Normal
Last and maybe most importantly, recognize that snacking is totally normal!
If you get too focused on eliminating snacks, it could just backfire and spark the binge-restrict cycle. Snacks are a totally normal part of a health-promoting eating pattern, so don’t get too concerned if you need a snack between meals to tide you over.
Final Thoughts
Reaching for a bite to eat between meals is totally normal; many people need snacks to keep up their energy levels, regulate their blood sugars, and promote concentration throughout the workday. However, constant snacking throughout the whole day may be a sign that something else is going on.
Make sure you’re eating enough in terms of quantity and variety, and if you are, consider whether you could benefit from bringing more mindfulness to your eating and if you’re using food to cope with emotions.
For more support, we offer a 3-part registered dietitian-led masterclass on intuitive eating to help you improve your relationship with food, your body, and movement.
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