Hold It!....Don't Stash the Candy

Ahhhh Halloweeeeen!!!!!

 A time many parents struggle with the amount of candy their children collect....in many cases pounds of excess candy are toted home. This amount of candy in the hands of young children still learning how to moderate their intake of sweets can be unsettling. It is natural for parents to want to take the majority, if not all, of the candy from their children- placing it in "protective custody" or disposing of it in the night. There is altruism in their efforts as they work to protect their children from obesity, childhood diabetes, heart disease and poor nutrition- all which stem from excess intake of sweets and candy.

Screenwriter John August created a back scene and new character in the 2005 movie based upon Roald Dahl's wildly popular book "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" about Willy Wonka's father. In the movie Willy Wonka's father, a dentist, never allows his son to keep his Halloween candy. We see little Willy Wonka returning from trick-or-treating only to have his father pick at every item he had collected, including lollipops- calling them "cavities on a stick" and tossing all of it into the fire. From this experience the character develops a lifelong passion for candy, leaving home and building a chocolate factory.

Have you seen it?

Or want to see it again?

Okay, okay, so depriving our kids of candy isn't going to drive them to run away from home and build a candy factory. But the screenwriter had a witty way of making a point- our children will soon be adults with their own funds and will be waiting at the grocery check stand with boxes of candy bars in endless varieties. They will be ordering a coffee at their local Barista with an array of cakes, cookies and brownies displayed in a lighted, gleaming glass case. Our children will grow into adults who will need to be able to make healthy food choices in a world with unhealthy food options practically everywhere they turn. As we know all too well, often the unhealthy food choices are more readily available than the healthier choices.

Not taking the candy, not doling out the candy takes faith that our children can learn moderation and self-regulate.

Renowned Registered Dietitian and Licensed Clinical Social worker Ellyn Satter discusses Halloween candy in her book, "Your Child's Weight, Helping Without Hurting":

"Halloween candy presents a learning opportunity. Work toward having your child be able to manage his own stash. For him to learn, you will have to keep your interference to a minimum. When he comes home from trick or treating, let him lay out his booty, gloat over it, sort it and eat as much of it as he wants. Let him do the same the next day. Then have him put it away and relegate it to meal- and snack-time: a couple of small pieces at meals for dessert and as much as he wants for snack time.''


''If he can follow the rules, your child gets to keep control of the stash. Otherwise, you do, on the assumption that as soon as he can manage it, he gets to keep it. Offer milk with the candy, and you have a chance at good nutrition.''

Incredulous?
Research supports Ms. Satter's position.

In a study published as early as 1980 in Child Development preschool children were given a food each child felt neutral about. They were presented this food either 1) as a reward 2) presented in conjunction positive adult attention 3) in a nonsocial context 4) at snack time. The result: the preschool children given the food as a reward or with adult attention increased their preference for the food which persisted for 6 weeks after the intervention. When the same food items were given at snack time or in a nonsocial context without any extra attention from the adult, no increase in preference was noted.1
(This is why food should never be used as a reward or treat. Doing so creates an increase desire for the very food we are trying to moderate. Hey, kids are smart.)

In another study in a preschool lab at Pennsylvania State University, researchers showed restricting access to preferred foods increases consumption of those foods. Researchers determined which snack children least liked and most liked. During snack periods, children always had unlimited access to the least liked snack- unsalted wheat crackers. Initially children were given unlimited access to their preferred snacks- cheddar fish crackers and fish shaped pretzels. Later the children were only given access to their preferred snacks for 5 minutes of the 15 snack period. The results....children consumed more of the preferred snack when access was limited than when they had unlimited access to the very same food. Limiting access to foods kids prefer but parents want to limit creates an increased desire and when access is granted, kids will consume more.2

Another study, cited by Ms. Satter in her book "Your Child's Weight: Helping Without Harming" is one in which data was collected on girls 5-9, including their weight and whether or not their mothers strictly moderated their food intake. The girls whose mothers strictly moderated their food intake more often ate when they weren't hungry and weighed more than the girls whose mothers did not moderate intake. 3

The older children get the less control their parents truly have on their food intake. You can't limit what you can't see them eating at a friends house, etc.

Begin early:
Remember learning healthy eating patterns is a learning process which begins in infancy.
Be sure to follow Ellyn Satter's Division of Feeding Responsibility.

Adults are responsible for what foods they offer, and when and where they are offered.

Children are responsible for how much they eat or even if they eat at all.

• Adults can help children learn about portion sizes by serving children an age appropriate portion size at meals and snacks. Visit MyPlate.org for food group portion sizes for different age groups.
• If your child doesn't eat all of the food served, let it go, without remark or expression.
• If your child wants more, offer more, without remark or expression.
• Eat meals together and be sure to sit down while eating, even for snacks.
• It is your responsibility to help your child learn to like healthy foods. For picky eaters this will take a great deal of patience and multiple exposures and creativity in presentation. Ms. Satter has some great resources on working with children who don't like fruits and vegetables and picky eaters.
• Provide a good example of healthy eating through your own eating practices.

Remember to provide a healthy meal before you go out trick-or-treating.

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

1) Birch LL, Zimmerman S, Hind H. The influence of social-affective context on preschool children’s food preferences. Child Dev 1980;51:856–61.
2) Fisher, JO, Birch, LL. Restricting access to palatable foods affects children's behavioral response, food selection, and intake. Am J Clin Nutr 1999; Jun; 69(6):1264-72

3) Birch LL, Fisher JO, Davison KK. Learning to overeat: maternal use of restrictive feeding practices promotes girls' eating in the absence of hunger. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2003;78(2):215-220.

Enjoy these posts for more information on child feeding & nutrition. 

If you are a child care provider in California you can receive cash reimbursements for providing healthy food to the children in your care. If you are a child care provider in El Dorado, Alpine, Placer, Nevada or Mono county our agency can help you enroll in the California Child Care Food Program (CCFP).