Which is better: three main meals or lots of small meals?

March 17, 2015

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I reached breaking point last week.

I was told that eating many small meals throughout the day was actually good for you, despite this being poo pooed over the last few years in favour of limited snacking and three main meals.

I was furious, not only because this was a very good example of even MORE conflicting nutritional advice, but also because I had specifically changed my eating habits based on the “eat big meals and fast more” advice.

I was confused, I was overwhelmed, and I was very, very hungry.

So I spoke to Sydney City Nutritionist Jennifer May (aka someone who does food for a living) to get a definitive answer once and for all on this health dilemma, and many other food-related “facts” we’ve all heard over the years.

She fed me some carrots and sturdy information, which hopefully clears things up for everyone who is just as confused as me.

Claim: Eating small meals is good for you

Fact: Do what feels good for you.

Jennifer said that as long as you’re getting enough protein, vegetables and carbohydrates, it really doesn’t matter if you’re having them in three big meals, or many small meals. This means eating six serves of vegetables (a serving is a handful) per day and stopping when you’ve had enough.

I will promptly be returning to eating like the grazing rabbit I truly am.

Claim: Skipping breakfast is the worst thing you can do

Fact: You can skip breakfast, just make sure the first thing you eat is nutritious.

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The jury is still out on whether skipping breakfast is good or bad for you. Some say fasting for longer periods is a grand idea, others say that skipping breakfast is what foolish people do.

Because of this, Jennifer offers an adaptation of both of these stances, “My advice is eat when you feel hungry but the first thing you eat or drink each day must be nourishing”.

This means getting out the kale juices and chia seeds, people.

Claim: Fasting is good for you

Fact: Fasting can be excellent, but it’s not for everyone.

Have you heard of the 5:2 diet? If you haven’t, you have escaped the biggest dieting fad going around, so congratulations you.

To get you up to speed, this diet advocates eating whatever you want for five days, then eating 500 calories on the remaining two days.The point of all of this is that fasting is cool now and celebrities everywhere are getting on the bandwagon.

When I talked to Jennifer, she agreed that fasting could be good for you, but it’s not for everyone and it’s certainly not a necessity. She recommended speaking to a professional to get a tailored plan for you.

Claim: You should eat until you’re full to avoid snacking

Fact: Snacking can be good for you (no, sorry, put down the chips).

As snacking is one of my favourite hobbies, this question was particularly important to me. Can I snack? (Please, oh please, Jennifer).

Her answer was yes, but it needs to be healthy, like a cup of vegetables.

I’ll say what I know we’re all thinking, this is disappointing. But, veggies can be exciting! Like cucumber with goats cheese or carrots and hommus. And if you visualise it hard enough, it will definitely eventually taste like chocolate!*

Claim: We should drink 2L of water a day

Fact: We should drink two litres of water a day.

Well this was more straight-forward than I expected. I had recently heard that we may be drinking too much water, and we need to slow down on the hydration.

However, Jennifer informed me that actually, we should be aiming for two litres, particularly focusing on the morning when we wake up dehydrated.

Claim: Fruit is a “free food”, you can never have too much

Fact: Fruit isn’t as great for us as we think.

Fruit has really let me down on this one. All my life I thought I could gorge on as much fruit as I liked when actually, it was sneakily contributing to my hunger and sugar-highs.

Jennifer suggests two to three serves of fruit a day. Maximum. I suggest we rally together to spread the word on the lies this food-group has been feeding us.

Sydney City nutritionist Jennifer May can be contacted here.

I hope this information has helped your rumbling tummies as much as it has helped mine, now go and eat your healthy vegetables and be happy. Also, I will be in touch to organise the Fruit Is Sneaky rally. Stay tuned.

*Vegetables will probably never taste like chocolate.

Check out our gallery of foods you never knew were good for you!

10 foods you never knew were healthy

BreadKATIE THOMSITT, Dieticians Australia spokesperson says: "Lots of people shy away from bread to achieve weight loss. But bread is such an important source of fibre, and plays such a helpful role in weight loss and preventing bowel cancer. A couple of slices of a dark, seedy bread per day is absolutely fine."

CheeseKATIE SAYS: "Cheese is definitely a higher fat source of dairy, but still a good dairy fat. Choose low-fat options if you have it regularly, otherwise consume it in moderation. One serve of dairy is 30g, so a couple of slices is absolutely fine."

ChocolateKARA LANDAU, The Travelling Dietician says: "Studies have been able to show that dark chocolate can improve insulin sensitivity, reduce blood pressure in healthy individuals, protect against heart disease, and improve HDL good cholesterol (not a bad start for such a tasty food!). Dark chocolate also contains polyphenols, whilst white chocolate does not. These polyphenolic compounds are able to relax blood vessels allowing for better blood circulation, and thereby assisting with the maintenance of healthy blood pressure levels."

CoffeeKATIE SAYS: "Coffee is a really good snack, in particular if its milk-based to get the dairy in - for example, a skim latte. As long as its in moderation - daily guidelines say a maximum of three per day! And you want lots of water on top of that."

EggsKARA SAYS: "Yes, even the yolks are good for you! Healthy fat soluble vitamins, as well as half the protein found in an egg, are all found in the yolk!"

Avocado KATIE SAYS: "Avocado is a healthy fat. Lots of people think its high-fat and not good for you, but its rich in mono unsaturated fats, which give you protection against heart disease. It also helps with controlling lower cholesterol levels."

nutsKATIE SAYS: "Nuts fall into the same category as avocado - they have lots of healthy oils and fibre."

dairyKARA SAYS: "Often milk and yoghurts are fortified with Vitamin D (a fat soluble vitamin) which requires a small amount of fat to be present in order for the body to absorb it, therefore having the full fat variety can be of value to enhance the nutritional benefits from the products' consumption. The fat in the dairy also aids with satiety, which could prevent unhealthy snacking at a later point in the day."

PotatoKATIE SAYS: "Potato always gets a bad rap as a starchy vegetable, but it's an excellent source of fibre. Sweet potato in particular is great for weight management and sugar level control. Potatoes are also really rich in potassium."

Red meatKARA SAYS: People tend to restrict red meat unnecessarily, thinking that its high in saturated fat. "But lean red meat is high in protein, CLA (which has been found to be associated with lower body fat percentages), B12, iron and zinc. These are all nutrients we want to get into our body!"

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