The do’s and don’ts of Halloween candy

The do’s and don’ts of Halloween candy


Each year when hordes of ghouls, goblins and princesses trudge home lugging pumpkin-shaped baskets stuffed with sweet treats of every stripe, parents are left with the same age-old problem:

What do you do with all that candy?

Better yet, how do you stop a gaggle of sugar-crazed seven-year-olds from gorging themselves on lollipops and chocolate bars?

Luckily, experts have some advice on how to handle the Halloween candy rush.

First, make sure the little ones eat a nutritious meal before they hit the trick-or-treat trail. Also, give the kiddies a candy quota, and keep the stash where little hands can’t reach.

Second, get to know the calorie counts of the candies you have on hand. Fun-size or snack-size candies range from 40 to as many as 150 calories, depending on the confection in question. This can make a difference in what you dole out to kids and when.

With the high-calorie count of many candies, it’s also a good idea to cut out other sweetened foods or drinks, like soda or juice. And of course, sneaking in a little extra playtime or exercise into your child’s day can also help work off some of that sugar.

Worried about safety? Experts advise parents to stick to candies in sealed wrappers and toss any homemade snacks or fruit that winds up in a child’s goodie bag.

And you can’t talk candy without wondering how all that excess sugar will affect Junior’s choppers. To keep your child’s teeth cavity free, dentists say it’s best to let kids munch on sweet snacks during meals when they are eating other foods and drinking water. Eating candy alone exposes their teeth to more of the acids that cause cavities.

If that sounds scary, it shouldn’t. All it takes is a few simple tweaks for your kids to have their candy … and eat it too.

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