Snacking is a crucial part of a healthy diet, especially as a college student with a busy schedule. It’s so easy to snack on high sugar cakes and cookies, potato chips, and other junk food that are premade and easily accessible. However, the right snacks can help you avoid overeating, stay full and energized between meals, and help you to meet your daily recommended amount of macro and micronutrients.
Today I’m sharing a round of healthy snack ideas that work out great for college students who tend to have limited cooking abilities and lean more towards snacks that are on the go.
15 Healthy Snacks For College Students
Try any of these ideas when you’re looking for a healthy snack for college student.
Trail mix:
Trail mix is a great source of protein and healthy fats. It is full of conflict carbs. Most varieties have an assortment of nuts, dried fruit, seeds, and granola. It makes a great and quick energy boosting snack for college students just be mindful that if you are eating it to lose weight, too measure your portion size, as it can be a calorie dense option.
Protein bars:
There’s so many variety of protein bars, but generally speaking, a protein bar, are a great and quick source of protein and other energy boosting nutrients for a busy lifestyle. Many protein bars are packed with whole grains, nuts, and seeds. Some contain milk or plant-based protein sources like soy, pea, brown rice. They can also be good sources of fiber.
Granola bars:
Many granola bars are a good source of fiber, and contain micro nutrients like calcium, iron, vitamin B, and magnesium. Including healthy pre-packaged options like granola bars are a great way to keep you off the sweet treat aisles.
Nuts and seeds (sunflower seeds, almonds, etc):
Nursing sees offer a high amount of dietary fiber. They are rich in vitamins and minerals, like folate, niacin, vitamin B6, iron, zinc, calcium, copper, magnesium, potassium, vitamin E, and a lot more.
Jerky:
Jerky as a snack offers a well-balanced source of macronutrients for college students. With jerky you get an adequate amount of protein, low-carbs, and low-fat. It’s also pretty convenient to find and make for easy storing given the longer shelf life of the packaging.
Fruit:
Of course when you want a healthy snake, reaching for a fruit is a natural and easy option to take. Some fruit you might want to consider stocking up on as a college student include apples, bananas, and oranges which can all be stored without a fridge. You might also want to consider adding applesauce to the mix as well.
String cheese:
If you’re going to snack on cheese, string cheese is a great option to go with for a healthy snack idea. It’s typically higher in protein and fiber, lower in fat, lower in sodium and carbs than other cheese varieties. Try these other high protein low fat snacks if you’re needing more ideas.
Edamame:
Did you know? Edamame is a highly nutritious snack that is rich in protein, fiber, vitamins, and isoflavones.
Seaweed snacks:
Seaweed snacks contain small amounts of vitamins our body needs like vitamin A, C, E, and K, as well as calcium, magnesium, zinc, Foley, and sodium. There are so many other low carb snacks on the go to choose from!
Fruit leather:
Eating healthy can be tasty. If you’re looking for an alternative way of incorporating dried fruit, then fruit letter is a solid option. You get the benefits of eating fresh fruit only in condensed form. It tastes like candy! Just be mindful to check labels and pick an option with no added sugar. Also slow down and make sure you have good portion control as fruit leather contains a high calorie density.
Greek yogurt:
If you’re on a health journey or looking for a healthy snack idea, it’s hard to get away from incorporating some type of yogurt into your diet. Greek yogurt is a top choice for healthy snacks for college students. Lots of vitamins can be found in them such as B12, riboflavin, vitamin A, and more. Greek yogurt is also super rich and protein has low-fat and low carbs.
Whole grain crackers:
Whole grain crackers are a complex carb snack option for college students. Whole grain crackers contain a decent source of dietary fiber and protein. Crackers make a great snack idea for college students looking for snack options with a longer shelf life that is also filling between meals.
1 Apple & 1 Tbsp PB
171 CALORIES
24g Carbs, 4g Protein, 8g Fat, 5g Fiber, and 0g Added Sugar
Ingredients
1 Apple, small – 77 calories
1 Tbsp Peanut butter, unsweetened (Tbsp) – 94 calories
Instructions
- Slice apple and dip in peanut butter.
- Notes: Any other fruit is fine, if you don’t have an apple. No nuts? Use a seed butter, e.g. sunflower seed butter
2 Eggs & 1/2 Avocado
260 CALORIES
5g Carbs, 13g Protein, 20g Fat, 4g Fiber, 0g Added Sugar
Avocados are a good source of healthy fats.
Ingredients
2 Egg, large – 144 calories
½ Avocado, small – 117 calories
Instructions
- Hard boil eggs. Add salt & pepper when eating if you like.
- Keep the other 1/2 of the avocado from going bad by rinsing it with water, and keeping it in an air-tight container.
Ants on a Log
326 CALORIES
38g Carbs, 9g Protein, 16g Fat, 5g Fiber, and 0g Added Sugar
If you’re looking for a healthy snacks for college students, then ants on a log is an old timey classic. This snack option has brings a great source of fiber.
Ingredients
½ cup Celery stalks, chopped in half – 8 calories
2 Tbsp Peanut butter, unsweetened (Tbsp) – 188 calories
¼ cup Raisins – 130 calories
Instructions
- Top celery with peanut butter and raisins.
- No nuts? Use any other seed butter
Do Snacks Help Students Focus?
Do snacks help students focus? The answer is yes! If you have ever heard of such a thing as brain food, there is truth behind the label. There are a lot of benefits to eating healthy snacks while you’re in college. There are certain types of food that you can eat, which have been found to be good for brain health, improving memory, and cognitive function — all great for study sessions.
Some snacks that have been found to be good for brain health include walnuts, apple, tuna, dark chocolate, eggs, and pumpkin seeds, etc.
