The trick is to put candy in its place
3:30 PM- Allow candy as part of regular meal and snack times vs. eating everything in one night
- The sugar from candy does not beat out the sugar consumed from sodas, sports, and energy drinks!
- You don't have to be the one giving or taking an apple, but see if you can hunt down these other options (see below)
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| Pistachios Pistachio Halloween packs |
What about Halloween candy?" a woman asked recently. Is it all bad for kids? How much is too much?
As scary as those bags of goodies look this time of year, experts say that the sugar kids typically ingest from candy is small compared to the amount they take in from sweetened beverages each year. Surprisingly, the sugar kids get from candy accounts for only 6 percent of the added sugars in their diets. Most of the sugar kids ingest comes in the form of sweetened beverages such as sodas, sports drinks and energy drinks.
Which brings up a scary word: SoFAS — Solid Fats and Added Sugars. These are the main contributors to the extra calories that make us fat and sick, say nutrition and health experts who compiled the most recent Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
So what's a caring parent to do with little trick-or-treaters and their bags of candy? Child nutrition expert Ellyn Satter reminds parents to "treat candy the same way you do other sweets. Your child needs to learn to manage sweets and to keep sweets in proportion to the other foods he or she eats."
We need to remember, too, that over-restricting goodies may be just as harmful as over-indulging our kids with sweets, according to some research. At least one study found that kids who were "treat-deprived" loaded up on forbidden foods even when they were not hungry.
So what are the tricks for treating special occasions? Keep treats in their place, says Satter. Relegate candy to regular meal and snack times. "With that kind of structure, candy won't spoil a child's diet or make him too fat."
That said, is there any guidance on "how much" sugar and spice is still nice? According to the latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans, once we have our daily nutrient needs met, most of us (including children) have about 5 to 15 percent of our calories to spend on SoFAS. That leaves room for the occasional birthday cake, ice cream, trick or treating and other holiday treats that arise.
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| Angie's Kettle Corn snack packs |
And there are some treats that can please kiddos without breaking their sugar and fat bank. Popcorn is a good example. One that caught my attention: "Angie's Kettle Corn" in "Halloween Snack Packs." No solid fats, low sodium, 70 calories and 4 grams (less than a teaspoon) of sugar per serving. Those are treats we can all live with.
Original Source: "The trick is to put candy in its place" by Barbara Quinn, RD, CDE
Best Teen Diets recommends healthy well balanced eating that includes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, protein and low-fat or fat-free dairy. We offer nutrition information for teens, parents and educators that emphasizes the importance of healthy eating for peak performance. For more information regarding healthy eating for teens visit www.bestteendiets.org
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