Snacks and Snacking: Impact on Health of the Consumers and Opportunities for its Improvement

Snacking is the most common social activity throughout the world. People often snack on various types of foods including, fried foods, dried foods, junk foods and beverages of various kinds. The snack manufacturing industry is now becoming a key food industry throughout the world. These snack products could be classified into various types based on the raw material used and the technique used in their manufacturing. Snacking has a dual impact on human health. It helps in controlling hunger and may help reduce excess calorie intake. On the otherhand, it can lead to obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and hypertension, if consumed uncontrolably and prepared with unhealthy ingredients. Thus, understanding the role of snack and development of healthy snack is equally necessary to determine the appropriate status of snack and snacking product in the human diet. The present review aims to classify the various types of snacks into different categories based on the ingredients and techniques used. It also highlights the impact of snacks on human health and research progress made to develop healthy snacks.