India, Sept. 1 -- Children love to snack a lot. They often even associate snacks with joy. But most of the time, the popular snack options are majorly unhealthy, loaded with high amounts of sodium, sugar, unhealthy fats, and preservatives. Childhood is a growing period, and all these harmful foods can affect their health and disrupt their development. The solution is to find an alternative to their favourite snacks.

Dr Srishti Goyal, consultant dietician at Ujala Cygnus Group of Hospitals, told HT Lifestyle that junk food causes many health problems in kids, like weight gain, obesity and diabetes.

But before we look at healthy snacking options, let's understand why children snack so frequently. Is it out of boredom, or is there another ...