25% of Americans are snacking more since the pandemic hit

Struggling to not eat everything in sight since the pandemic hit? You’re not alone.

In fact, during the early stages of the Covid-19 outbreak, cookie and cracker sales in the US increased by almost 30%, which is “a gargantuan leap in the world of groceries,” according to a recent article in The New York Times.

Now, this might have you thinking, ‘Of course people bought more snacks; they were likely preparing for inevitable shutdowns and were buying food in bulk.’ But this uptick in snack purchases by US consumers hasn’t just been a result of hoarding, the Times reports.

Instead, people have been buying snacks and eating them — only to then return to the grocery store to buy more, according to the same article by the Times.

Additionally, one in four people surveyed in April of 2020 by Sanford C. Bernstein, an investment research and institutional asset management company, admitted to eating “more salty and sugary snacks” since the pandemic hit.

If, like these snackers, you’ve been treating yourself to more for-fun foods than usual — and feel as if you’ve fallen off the health wagon in the last few months — Diet Doctor can help you to reclaim control over your cravings and cut down on snacking.

For one, we firmly believe that it’s important to prioritize meal time and make sure you’re getting the proper amount of protein and fats with breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Doing so should help to eliminate your desire to munch throughout the day.

But, we also understand that preparing each meal can start to feel like a drag — at least without some helpful advice and inspiration.

If it’s the hassle of prepping meals that’s sent you into a snacking spiral, be sure to peruse our new No-cook low-carb and keto meals for delicious low-carb breakfast, lunch, dinner (and dessert!) recipes that require either minimal cooking or no cooking at all.

If you’ve been crushing it at your usual meal routine, but the boredom (or anxiety) of staying home still has you feeling just a bit “peckish,” as the Australians would say, give our Feeling Snack-y? column a read ASAP.

In this short piece, Diet Doctor’s Kristie Sullivan offers up advice on what to do when you just can’t seem to refrain from eating the entire tub of keto ice cream. Or worse, if you’ve recently found yourself elbow-deep in a bag of potato chips.

Finally, if you feel you need a total redirect to get you back on-track, our free Get Started Challenge is always there for you, offering two weeks of meal plans, recipes, and curated information.