Happy Halloween!
Halloween began as a festival to ward off the spirits of the dead several centuries today. We have come to know it today as a festival of costumes, pumpkins and candy.
Did you know that Halloween is the day when the largest amount of candy is consumed in the United States? This year candy sales is expected to $2.23 billion during Halloween.On an average, kids consume about 3 cups of sugar (3500 - 7000 calories) worth of candies just in that one night. That is as much as 144 teaspoons of sugar! Compare this against a recommended daily sugar quota of 9 teaspoons! If you think it is not too much, think of it this way - a 100-pound child who eats 7,000 calories worth of candy would have to walk for almost 44 hours or play full-court basketball for 14.5 hours to burn all that sugar! If you don’t burn that off, it will accumulate as fat in your body. Don’t forget those dental cavities either!
That doesn't mean one shouldn't trick-or-treat. It is a great way to hang out with friends for sure... Some of that walking on Halloween will actually even do us a lot of good! But we can always choose to pass up on candy and just enjoy the decorations... However, if that need for sugar is too much, the key is to be responsible and become aware of how much candy is being eaten and moderate it. It is our body after all!
Enjoy Halloween Responsibly!
Here is a link to an info-graphic that illustrates the amount of sugar consumed on Halloween. Don't forget to check it out!
I think that its important to actually know what's in it. I checked on the label of reese's pieces and it said that it had "0 grams trans fat", but partially hydrogenated oil was the SECOND ingredient. Scares like that kinda made me lose my appetite for candy. Don't get me wrong, I still like the taste of it though :)
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