Healthy eating doesn't mean you have to give up all your favorite foods. You can be selective about what you eat and still eat the foods you enjoy.

A nutritionist will recommend eating an apple or celery sticks if you want a healthy, nutritious snack. But can you imagine serving celery sticks, tofu kabobs, and rice cakes when "the gang" comes over to watch a video? Even the most health-conscious among us have to admit that there are times when only cookies, chips, crackers, dips, and spreads will do.

Many well-known brands of snack foods are now available in reduced-fat or reduced-sodium versions so you can steer clear of nutritional land mines without being a party pooper. However, the trick is to find lower calorie, fat or salt versions of your favorite snacks, and to compare the amount that makes up a portion with the amount you normally eat so you can incorporate snack foods into your diet without overdosing on fat and salt.

"Snack foods are a big issue with my clients," admits Connie Diekman, a St. Louis-based registered dietitian and spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. "They want to know: 'Can I still eat them?' 'How much can I eat?' and 'What else do I have to give up?'" Of course, if you choose to snack on fruit or low-fat yogurt, you'll get fiber, calcium and other important nutrients your body needs. One approach is to satisfy your appetite with these snack suggestions so you'll want to eat less (or none) of the high-fat, high calorie snacks.

"When choosing snack foods, I advise my clients to figure out what is more important to them-eating a larger portion of the reduced-fat version or eating a smaller amount of the full-fat version," Diekman says. "For instance, if a serving of potato chips is 1 ounce (28 grams), there may be 16 chips per serving for the full-fat version and 30 for the fat-free version." Diekman adds that many of her clients incorporate their favorite snacks into their diets by giving up other things, such as not putting dressing on their salads.

Are you really hungry?

Why do you eat? Because you're hungry of course! But sometimes people eat because they see food that looks tempting, everyone else is eating, or they're bored, frustrated, nervous or sad.

The best reason to eat is because your body tells you that you are hungry. If you are eating when you are not hungry, try doing something else to get your mind off food. Call a friend, exercise, read a book, or listen to some music. These activities can help you cut back on eating when you are feeling bored, upset, or stressed out.
Snack suggestions for a healthy diet:

*Baked potato chips or tortilla chips with salsa

*Pretzels (lightly salted or unsalted)

*Bagels with tomato sauce and low-fat cheese

*Flavored rice cakes (like caramel or apple cinnamon)

*Popcorn - air popped or low-fat microwave

*Veggies with low-fat or fat-free dip

*Low-fat cottage cheese topped with fruit or spread on whole-wheat crackers

*Ice milk, low-fat frozen or regular yogurt (add skim milk, orange or pineapple juice, and sliced bananas or strawberries to make a low-fat milk shake)

*Frozen fruit bars

*Vanilla wafers, gingersnaps, graham crackers, animal crackers, fig bars, raisins

*Angel food cake topped with strawberries or raspberries and low-fat whipped cream

*String cheese