Americans are stopping for gas, but they aren’t grabbing their usual snacks or smokes.

The change in behavior is hurting U.S. sales of Doritos, Twinkies, Heath bars and Newports.

U.S. convenience-store sales volume fell by 4.3% as prices rose in the year ended Feb. 23, according to market-research firm Circana. Among snacks purchased in those stores, rice cakes dropped most sharply, followed by items such as dips, nuts and jerky. Refrigerated products dropped about 7% by sales volume, and chocolate candy fell by 6%, according to the Circana data.

At a Circle K store in suburban Chicago, adult customers with children in tow hurry out the door before they get talked into buying a snack, said sales representative David Guerino. Shoppers are picking up fewer items in a range of categories from ice cream to cigarillos, he said. A large bag of chips there now costs $7.

“People can’t afford it anymore,” Guerino said. “If it’s not a necessity, they’re not as willing to splurge.”

U.S. consumer sentiment tumbled in February, reflecting fears that President Trump’s trade war would push prices higher.

“Right now the consumer is looking at a lot of these products and are saying: ‘Wow, I can’t remember when it was this expensive,’” said Lori Buss Stillman, a vice president for research and education at the National Association of Convenience Stores.

A growing focus on healthier eating and less indulgent snacking is also contributing to the decline in convenience-store sales, said Max Gumport , an analyst at BNP Paribas Exane.

At gas stations, many drivers aren’t even going inside the store after they finish pumping, said Ramon Laguarta, the chief executive at PepsiCo . And some cigarette smokers who typically buy a carton are now grabbing a single pack instead, according to the National Association of Tobacco Outlets.

To entice convenience-store shoppers, PepsiCo is developing mini meals like Doritos loaded with warm nacho cheese sauce and other toppings. J.M. Smucker rolled out limited-edition cherry-flavored Twinkies at 7-Eleven. And Reynolds American is trying to reach price-sensitive smokers with a more affordable Newport cigarette.

The downturn has weighed on Smucker’s recently acquired Hostess brand.

“Gas prices have been elevated and so people are just having a bit less extra discretionary change in their pocket,” said Smucker CEO Mark Smucker.

Smucker’s $5 billion deal for Hostess in 2023 gave the company a foothold in convenience stores, where Smucker sought to boost sales of products such as Uncrustables sandwiches. Smucker said in February that sales in its sweet-baked-snacks unit, which includes Hostess, fell 7% for the latest quarter. The company took two impairment charges tied to that business totaling more than $1 billion.

Smucker said consumers, faced with rising prices and diminished discretionary income, are curbing their spending across many types of stores. To revive Hostess, the company said it is expanding distribution, modernizing the brand’s packaging and debuting new products.

Hershey has been struggling with weakening demand for its chocolate. The Pennsylvania chocolatier has said that sales have suffered in convenience stores in part because consumers are shifting purchases away from those stores and into dollar stores and big-box stores such as Walmart.

Hershey is trying to boost sales across at least 40% of its convenience-store customers with its so-called “gold standard planogram,” which uses data to determine details such as the best mix of king- and standard-size candy bars on shelves in a given store. The company is also boosting marketing for core convenience-store brands such as Heath, Almond Joy and Mounds, Hershey said.

Guerino, the Circle K employee, said there is one item that convenience-store shoppers are still all in on: lottery tickets.

“Sales are never slow for those,” he said.