Treat With Sweets Or Be Ready For Tricks

By Nancy K. Crevier

Dressed in their finest creations, hundreds of ghoulish ghouls and pretty princesses all over Newtown will take to the streets Halloween night, rapping at doors, eager for a handout. But you can forget about the apples, oranges, crackers, and raisins. Don’t bother with pretzels or granola bars, either, unless you like the nouveau-decorating look of toilet paper about your trees and bushes. Trick or Treaters in Newtown are out for sugar.

Lollipops, gum pops, chocolate bars, Tootsie Rolls, gum, candy corn, or any one of the hundreds of other varieties of candy that make the grocery shelves groan like ghouls this month are what it takes to satisfy the sweet tooth of  the ghosts and witches on the prowl October 31.

When the Celts of Ireland immigrated to the United States, bringing with them their All Saints’ Day Eve tradition of putting out food and drink to appease wandering spirits, they had no idea that this event would blossom into a billion-dollar enterprise with more than 80 percent of American children taking part in the tradition of Trick or Treating on Halloween.

One of that throng, Christina Catorale, a student at Reed Intermediate, will be on the lookout for a bounty of Skittles when she goes out Trick or Treating the end of the month. It doesn’t have to be the new-fangled sour kind, “Just plain, old regular Skittles,” she says. Her pal Molly Mahony doesn’t hesitate an instant about the candy she likes best: Reese’s Pieces.

Ben Mahony, 13, is a fan of Snickers, that chewy, nutty chocolate-covered treat that sticks to your braces, as is Andrew LaMarche, another Newtown Middle School student. Nate Crevier, however, gives a thumbs up to Chewy Sprees, a multicolored, fruit-flavored confection.

At Lisa and John Swain’s household, their children are divided on which candy is the best of all for Halloween. Owen is another Skittles booster, as is his brother, Will. Will waffles between a vote for Skittles, though, and his other fruity favorite, Starbursts. Their brother Evan has his fingers crossed for full-sized Twix bars.

“Any kind of chocolate” will fit the bill for seventh grader Danielle Pierce, but her younger brother Timmy says his favorite Halloween treat is a classic: candy corn, of which more than 35 million pounds will be manufactured this year. Not to worry, Danielle, more than 25 million chocolate Hershey Kisses are produced every day.

While the Newtown youngsters polled prefer the tried and true varieties of candy, specialty candies for the Halloween season abound. Marshmallow Peeps, once an icon of Easter, are packaged during the Halloween season as ghostly apparitions or smiling pumpkin heads. Jack-o-lantern suckers, skeleton and spider pops, and Frankenstein-headed Pez join other packaged treats, all decked out in black and orange.

Chocolate eyeballs, anyone? How about a candy-filled skull? Black cat licorice is hard to pass up. Bewitching tattoos and glow-in-the-dark stickers accompany bags of gum and hard candies, and plastic trinkets, whistles, and rings are part of the Halloween attraction in the candy aisle. Gum drops, M&M’s and Hershey Kisses all have their own black and orange versions this month. And yes, even pretzels come in cheery pumpkin packaging.

 According to the United States Census Bureau, in 2003 Americans devoured 25 pounds of candy per capita. Granted the number is down from the 1997 consumption of 27 pounds per capita, but that is still a whole lot of sweets. Chances are, Halloween revelers would get very sick if they tried to consume their yearly quota of candy in just this one night, even though they may well bring home a year’s worth of goodies.

No matter how appealing it is to carry a bag full of Halloween treats, Newtown Police Youth Officer Dana Schubert reminds Trick or Treaters to wait until they get back home to indulge themselves. Parents should check for candy in opened wrappers and anything out of the ordinary.

“We haven’t had problems in the past in the community,” he says, “but it’s always good to be careful.”

The biggest question parents face at the end of the evening is how much candy to allow their child to consume. With childhood obesity prominently in the news, it is a valid question, but one that can only be answered by parents, who are best aware of their child’s consumption and exercise habits.

A king-size Twix bar contains 404 calories and has 38 grams of sugar. On the other hand, eight pieces of Spree candy are a 50-calorie treat with 10 grams of sugar. A fun-size milk chocolate candy bar, the size most commonly handed out for Halloween, contains 91 calories and 8.7 grams of sugar, but fun-size Starburst have 174 calories and 28 grams of sugar.

Kids and parents might be shocked to know the amount of effort it is going to take to burn off  that bag of candy. For a child who weighs 80 pounds, ten minutes of flag football will burn about 48 calories, ten minutes of active dancing takes away 36 calories, and five minutes of putting away the groceries (or all of that candy) burns up only 7.6 calories. Plug in your own statistics at Prevention.com for more surprises.

If this Halloween turns out to be a bonanza year and the wandering spirits in your household are wandering to the candy jar too often, a portion of the take can be safely stored for future indulgence.  The National Confectioners Association offers these storage tips:

Dark chocolate can be wrapped in foil and stored in a cool, dark, dry place for one to two years. Milk and white chocolates should be stored only eight to ten months.

Jellied candies will last six to nine months in a covered candy bowl, or unopened, up to 12 months.

Gum has a shelf life of about six to nine months when stored in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight.

Caramel candies can last six to nine months, covered, at room temperature.

That timeless tricolored temptation, candy corn? Store it in a covered candy dish for three to six months. Unopened packages should be good for nine months.

And about those bags of pretzels? If you were hoping to stave off tooth decay, the American Dental Association notes that starchy foods are as likely to breed cavity-producing bacteria as are the sugary treats. Encourage children to rinse and brush their teeth thoroughly after snacking on sweets or starchy items.

There is no need to be frightful come Halloween. Like most everything else, moderation appears to be the best approach when it comes to consuming candy.