16 Ways Millennials are #Winning the Food Game (Part 3 of 4)

Cheers and thanks for joining [NL] as we continue our countdown of 16 reasons why Millennials are #winning the nutrition game. Yesterday, we explained how being inherently digital, keen to nutrition expert presence, eating ethically, and going global all help Millennials in staying ahead of the nutritional curve.

Here’s four more:

8. Serial Snackers

Millennial 1: “Did you eat slunch today?”

Millennial 2: “No, but I plan on having a very big brinner.”

Millennials are serial snackers and are said to spend a higher percentage of their total foodservice dollars on snacks than other generations. According to the trend watchers, The Kruse Co , 35% of meals eaten by Millennials aren’t really meals at all; they’re snacks. “Desserts are now eaten at any time, sometimes even before breakfast. Lunch and dinner are increasingly combined into ‘linner’, and many consumers insist on breakfast for dinner, forcing restaurants to keep the breakfast grills fired all day to serve ‘brinner.’

“If students eat any square meals per day, it might be one. The rest is filled with snacks and food on the go.” says Shawn La Pean, the executive director of dining at University of California Berkeley. “Weird eating is the new normal.”

Nutritional Impact: We eat and we eat often. We eat at any time of the clock. We skip meals casually, but make up for it by eating 7 or 8 small snacks in a day. We eat all the time, so restaurants are preparing by making food available to Millennials any time hunger strikes. Due to second jobs, increased schooling, and erratic schedules more Millennials are stretching their days until the early morning hours. And though this may seem like a negative habit, frequent eating can keep the metabolic engine revved. If we go long periods without nourishment, our bodies go into ‘starvation’ mode and metabolism starts to shut down. Research points to the benefits of snacking as a long term nutritional habit.

Just remember, there is a smart way to snack. A quadruple cheeseburger and milkshake does not fit into this category. In short, aim for 300-400 calories, depending on the frequency of your snacking.

7. Veggie is Vogue

Vegetarianism has been a growing trend in the nation for years but Millennials seem to have picked up on it more so than other generations. The Hartman Group study found that 12% of Millennials are “faithful vegetarians”, compared to 4% of Gen X’ers and 1% of Boomers.

According to another study on collegiate Gen-Y eating demands, “More students align themselves along the less-meat to meatless spectrum from flexitarian to vegetarian to vegan and even raw diets”. In fact, the Vegetarian Resource Group reported that 42% of vegetarians are between the ages 18 and 34; the Millennial generation.

To drive the point further home, Jonathan Safran Foer reports in his book Eating Animals, that approximately 18% of college students in the U.S. are vegetarian and that half of this group want more vegetarian options to be available on campus. A Philadelphia Inquirer article featured information from Bon Apetit Management Company (which serves college and university accounts) stating that there was a 50% increase in vegetarian students and the percentage of vegan students doubled from 2005 to 2010.

Nutritional Impact:

The backlash to the demand has been wild. Vegetarian eating plans are popping up everywhere. Schools are doing ‘Most Vegan-Friendly” competitions. Millennials are hosting Meatless Monday parties.

While meat can be a great source of protein and iron, science has also showed that there are several health benefits to eating more veggies. For instance, studies have shown decreases in mortality rates from heart disease in vegetarians. A vegetarian diet can offer lower levels of saturated fat and cholesterol and often are high in fiber, folate, and phytochemicals.

And, hey! If full on vegan/veg is too much of a commitment, some Millennials opt for ‘vegetarian with benefits’: