When hunger strikes in the late afternoon, it’s tempting to grab the quickest option available, whether it’s a biscuit, pastry or another refined-carbohydrate snack. While these choices may satisfy you in the moment, they may not keep you feeling full for long, leaving you reaching for another snack soon after. Before you know it, a quick bite can turn into repeated snacking and more food than you had planned.

The good news is that satisfying your 4pm hunger doesn’t have to mean spending more time in the kitchen or giving up on taste. A few simple combinations can be quick to put together, delicious and more satisfying, helping you make your afternoon snack work harder for you rather than leaving you hungry again.

Nutritionist Mitun De Sarkar recommends a straightforward approach to avoid the 4 pm slump.

The three-part snack

A simple approach to snacking suggests thinking about three things when putting a snack together: fibre + protein + healthy fats. You don’t need to calculate them or get the balance perfect. Just combine everyday foods that bring something different to the snack.

For example, apple + Greek yoghurt + pecans.

The apple provides fibre and carbohydrate, the Greek yoghurt provides protein, while the pecans bring predominantly unsaturated fats, along with some fibre and plant-based protein.

Commenting on the approach, Mitun said, “A good snack doesn't need to be complicated. Combining foods that provide fibre, protein and healthy fats is a simple way to create something more satisfying.”

Think combination, not perfection

The point isn’t that every snack has to follow a rigid nutritional formula. It’s about thinking beyond a single convenient food and considering combinations.

An apple is easy to carry. Greek yoghurt is easy to keep in the office fridge. Pecans require no preparation. Put the three together and you have crisp, creamy and crunchy textures as well as different nutritional components. And there are plenty of ways to vary the idea.

Fresh berries can replace the apple. Oats can provide the carbohydrate component. Pecans can be chopped over yoghurt or eaten alongside it. The formula remains useful even when the ingredients change.

Make the better option the easy option

The biggest obstacle to a considered afternoon snack often isn’t knowledge. It’s convenience. When you’re busy and hungry, you’re unlikely to start preparing something elaborate. The solution is to make sure the components you need are already available.

·       Keep fresh fruit where you can see it.

·       Have yoghurt in the fridge.

·       Keep pecans in the pantry or at work.

Then the more balanced combination is almost as convenient as reaching for a biscuit.

 “Good intentions are much easier to follow when the food is already there. If you know you regularly get hungry in the afternoon, plan for that rather than treating it as a surprise every day”, advised Mitun.

The three-question check

Does my snack have some fibre?
Does it have some protein?
Does it include healthy fats?