AMAZING GRAZE; Great news: snacking through the day isn't bad after all.

FORGET the traditional idea of three meals a day. Eating in the Nineties is a moveable feast.

Many of us these days are grazers - rarely sitting down for a proper meal and eating little and often instead.

Marketing executive Kerry Savage, 25, is one of the new generation of snackers who have helped to revolutionise eating habits over the past 20 years.

Busy

She works a 12-hour day in a busy office and admits she is like the many 18- to 30-year-olds in a new survey who still haven't learnt to cook.

A chilli con carne is the most adventurous meal she has ever prepared. But, like 65 per cent of adults under 29, she is a regular snacker.

Breakfast is often a Nutrigrain bar and banana on the train on the way to work. She has a bowl of bran flakes with semi-skimmed milk at her desk in mid-morning.

Lunch is usually a filled jacket potato from a local take-away. Then it's down to an afternoon of fruit and yoghurt nibbling until 9pm.

"I don't want a big meal then, so I usually make a cheese and tomato sandwich or a bagel with cream cheese," she says.

But is grazing bad for us? Experts are rethinking the prevailing wisdom that food on the hoof is the reason why we are having to wage war on our waistlines. A recent study found that frequent eaters were no heavier than those who stuck to three meals a day.

Female grazers did tend to eat more calories, but they were likely to be more active.

Another study of 40 adult snackers found that grazing on low fat snacks might actually help you lose weight.

Free to snack on whatever low-fat foods they wished, the participants cut the fat in their diet from 37 per cent to 33.5 per cent.

Lyndel Constain of the British Dietetic Association explains: "Snackers tend to compensate by eating less when they do have a meal." Some experts argue that eating little and often is better for you, as it helps regulate blood sugar and blood cholesterol levels - with the result that you have more energy.

It takes three to four hours to digest a meal, so it's certainly not a good idea to leave more than five hours between meals, otherwise we would be running on empty.

It's not so much frequency of eating that is the problem, but the foods we choose to graze on.

Unfortunately, because they are easy to store, chocolates and crisps are usually the most widely-available foods for stuffing down on the hoof, and fast foods are notoriously high in fat. If your busy lifestyle demands that you graze, you need to be smart about your snacks.

"Even though I am grazing. I do make an effort to eat well," says 5ft 4ins Kerry, whose weight is stable at a svelte 9st.

Social

Of course, we are missing out on something very special when we eat on the hoof.

Sitting around a table with friends and family is an important social event.

Lyndel says: "It's a good time for conversation, a time to share and feel a sense of unity."

And unless you are rowing with your dining companions, proper mealtimes are a stress reliever, a way of punctuating the day, relaxing and taking time out.

Fast food to keep you healthy

SKIP the burgers, chocolates and crisps and go for:

Fruit, raw vegetables, dips.

Sandwiches (thick slices of bread, lean fillings).

Cereals (not sugary) with skimmed milk.

Pots of pasta or rice salad.

Currant buns (no icing).

Bags of unsalted nuts.

Low-fat yoghurts or fromage frais.

Cereal and breakfast bars.

Beans or sardines on toast.

TASTY LOW-FRY ZONE

Recipe

Celeriac casserole

in cabbage leaves

HERE'S a healthy low-fat recipe from Nadine Abensur's new book Cranks Light (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, pounds 18.99). Serves six.

1 savoy cabbage

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 small red onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

3 teaspoons garam masala

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander 

2 teaspoons paprika 

750g/1lb 10oz potatoes, peeled and diced

750g/1lb 10oz celeriac, peeled, cut into 1 cm/1/2in slices, then diced

Salt and pepper 

250g/9oz chestnut or button mushrooms, quartered

1 tablespoon tamari (soy sauce)

Juice of 1 small lemon

50g/2oz green beans, blanched and diced, or spinach, shredded

1/2 red pepper, very finely sliced

1 teaspoon harissa or other chilli sauce

A good handful of fresh parsley, chopped

1. Separate six outer leaves from cabbage. Blanch for 1min. Drain, refresh in cold water and set aside.

2. Shred and core about 100g/31/2oz of the remaining cabbage.

3. Heat 21/2 tablespoons of oil in a large pan, add the onion, garlic and fry until translucent. Add spices and fry 1-2mins, adding 2 tablespoons water.

4. Add potatoes, cook for 3mins. Then add celeriac, salt and pepper. Stir over a low heat, adding a little water to prevent sticking.

5. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a saucepan and saute mushrooms for 2-3mins, adding tamari and a little water as necessary (about 250ml/8fl oz in total). After 25mins the potatoes and celeriac should be tender but not falling apart.

6. To serve, add lemon juice, then beans, red peppers and harissa. Spoon into the outer leaves of the cabbage and garnish with parsley. Pour over any remaining liquid in pan.

Dear BEV

QI HAVE heard that there is now a no-calorie fat available.

I want to lose weight but can't give up my frying pan, so this sounds like a brilliant

Can you tell me what it is called and where I can buy it?

Mr Mount, Exeter

AYOU are talking about Olestra, a fake fat that has been developed in America and passes through the body without being digested.

Many experts are worried about Olestra because it is such an unnatural product, robs you of valuable vitamins and can cause upset stomachs and wind.

It is available in snack products such as crisps in the States, but you can't buy it in this country because its safety hasn't been proved.

Don't wait for this controversial food product to arrive here. Instead, learn how to prepare delicious food without using so much ordinary fat.

QI HAVE been trying to eat more healthily after a recent scare when I thought I had breast cancer.

Thankfully, my doctor has given me the all- clear, but it has made me more aware about how important it is to look after myself.

I used to be a big meat eater, especially beef and lamb. I want to cut back.

Can you tell me how much I should have each day, or should I give it up all together?

Miriam, Stockport

AYOU certainly don't have to give up meat to have a healthy diet, as it's a tremendous protein food and a major source of iron.

However, you should not be making it the main part of your meal. Instead, focus on your starchy foods and vegetables.

Because of links to cancer, the current advice is to reduce the amount of red meat you eat a day to 90g or 3oz.

That works out at about three thin slices of roast meat or one quarter- pounder burger.

QI HAVE an exercise bike which has been sitting in my shed for about three years.

I know I ought to get it out and try to get fit, but I just can't seem to get around to it. Have you any tips on how I might motivate myself to start using it?

Caroline, Chiswick

ASELL it. If you haven't felt inspired to use it for the past three years, I doubt whether it's the right sort of exercise for you.

The trouble with exercise bikes is that they can be tremendously boring. Choose another way to get fit - something that you will find fun and want to do rather than feel you ought to do.