Super Bowl Sunday is the "Super Bowl" of snacking! Research by the Calorie Control Council and the Snack Food Association finds that Americans will eat 30 million pounds of snacks on the big game day. That breaks down to 11.3 million pounds of potato chips, 8.5 million pounds of tortilla chips, 4.1 million pounds of pretzels, 3.8 million pounds of popcorn and 2.7 million pounds of nuts. The  average armchair quarterback will consume 1200 calories and 50 grams of fat from snacking and that doesn't even count any meals!

The Council's research reveals that potato chips, the snacking favorite, will account for 27 billion calories and 1.8 billion fat grams. These 1.8 billion fat grams nationwide are the same as 4 million pounds of fat. That 4 million pounds of fat is equal to the weight of 13,000 NFL offensive linemen at 300 pounds each.

The Calorie Control Council recommends pre-planning your Super Bowl event and menu to include no-fat and low-fat dips and chips. For instance, choosing fat-free potato chips for the big game could save up to 300 calories per person. And, nationwide, fat-free potato chips, could even cut 14 billion calories and 1.8 billion fat grams from our snack attacks.

When making dips, culinary expert and chef Marilyn Harris says cut the fat, but keep the flavor. For dips, Harris recommends trying salsa, which is fat-free, or substituting reduced-fat sour cream, using very little mayonnaise or trying non-fat yogurt. Use fresh herbs and spices and parsley, cilantro and hot pepper sauce to add great flavor. And to help relieve the stress of the game, put out lots of veggies for munching and crunching.

Also, Robin Steagall, a dietitian with the Calorie Control Council, recommends planning a "pre-Super Bowl workout" before settling in to watch the game. For example, to burn off those 1200 calories from snacking during the Super Bowl, it would take 4 hours walking around a football field or 1 hour and 45 minutes running. Or, if you want to get into the game spirit, it would take 2 hours and 10 minutes playing touch football to burn those calories.

Super Bowl Snacking Q and A with chef Marilyn Harris and dietitian Beth Hubrich, R.D.

	Try these great Super Bowl Party Recipes for "Cutting the Fat and Keeping the Flavor," by Chef Marilyn Harris
	If you don't watch what you eat during the Super Bowl, our Exercise Calculator will show you how to burn off those extra calories!

 

Last Updated 01/2007
Copyright © 2007 Calorie Control Council

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