Strawberries Are a Healthy Snack, but Are They Low in Calories?

Whether sliced onto cold cereal or eaten straight out of the pint, a serving of strawberries is a low-calorie source of essential nutrients, particularly vitamin C and manganese. Filling your breakfast bowl or afternoon snack with fresh strawberries can also add a good dose of fiber to your daily diet, aiding in weight management and satiety.

A one-cup serving of whole strawberries boasts about 46 calories, 11 grams of carbohydrates (3 grams of fiber and 7 grams of sugar) and less than one gram of either protein or fat.

So, if you eat 1,500 calories a day, snacking on a cup of the juicy fruit amounts to a mere 3 percent of your day's total!

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Each cup of whole strawberries gives you 84.7 milligrams of vitamin C, which is about 94 percent of your daily recommended value. As an antioxidant, vitamin C helps protect your body against the effects of free radicals, which are molecules that are produced when you break down the food you eat and when you're exposed to cigarette smoke, for instance, according to the Mayo Clinic.

With about 3 grams of fiber per serving, one cup of strawberries provides 12 percent of the daily recommended value of the nutrient. Found in many fruits and vegetables, fiber can help reduce cholesterol and may help control blood sugar levels, according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Not to mention, fiber is slow-digesting and may help you manage your weight by keeping you full for longer.

Strawberries are also an excellent source of manganese and provide about 24 percent of your daily recommended value of the nutrient. Manganese is crucial for bone development and helps your body metabolize or process amino acids, cholesterol and carbohydrates, according to Harvard Health.

‌Read more:‌ Top 10 Healthiest Fruits and Vegetables