Seaweed is an AWESOME snack and great replacement for chips!

If you’re like me, you like to snack. Chips and other crunchy, salty treats are very tempting and can be hard to turn down. After all, we are hard wired to crave salt and fat; an unfortunate vestigial craving from a time where these nutrients were scarce in our diets. Let’s face it, given that sodium and lipid deficiencies are more or less a thing of the past it can be hard to feel like you’re making healthy snacking choices that are still satisfying. Andy, I’m sorry, I love spinach but snacking on a tub of it really doesn’t hit the spot like a big ol’ bowl of Miss Vickie’s.

Enter seaweed. Yup, you heard me. But wait, didn’t I just say that veggies don’t satisfy my snack cravings? If you haven’t already tried the seaweed snacks on the market, you probably have a sinking feeling in your gut right now (great, another person just telling me to suck it up and eat healthy — I never thought of that before…). Before I lose you to a full-fledged bout of eye rolling, let me assure you that I’m going somewhere with this. Somewhere salty, crispy, and oh so satisfying!

But first, let’s talk about some of the health benefits of consuming seaweed in your diet. Specific levels vary by type, but most are higher in protein than other vegetables (so more satiating than snacking on spinach). They also boast impressive mineral contents, including calcium to promote bone health and iodine which promotes healthy thyroid function. Add to that respectable levels of vitamin A, vitamin E, vitamin K, B vitamins, and top it off with a good dose of super satiating soluble fibre and we are good to go!

So I’ve hopefully convinced you that you should eat seaweed, but have I convinced you that you want to? I’d like to reiterate that I love my snack foods. Potato chips, corn chips, buttery popcorn, and pretty much anything else that’s salty and crunchy (well, not bugles — everyone has a line). I can honestly tell you that since discovering seaweed snacks, I’ve often chosen those over some of my other favourites because I wanted to, not because I was trying to make a healthy choice. In fact, once you get hooked, good luck thinking about anything else!