Kids love Halloween, and why not? You get to dress up in a cool costume and go around the neighborhood filling your bag or plastic pumpkin with delicious candy. Then it's time to head home with that heavy haul of chocolate and other sweet treats. But what happens next? Do you eat a lot that night? Or maybe your mom or dad says "Whoa!" and tells you to pick a certain number of pieces.
We asked about 1,200 boys and girls about their Halloween haul. Here's what they said:
- Most kids said they get at least 50 pieces of candy, with over 44% saying they get more than 100 pieces.
- Only about 20% of kids said they eat all their Halloween candy.
- Whether they eat all or just some of their candy, it takes most kids a long time to do it. Nearly 60% said they need 2 weeks, 1 month, or more than a month. About 25% said they need only 1 day or less than 1 week. And the rest of the kids said they needed anywhere from 1 second (yeah, right) to a year!
But kids aren't always in charge when it comes to how much candy they get to eat — half said their parents put limits on how much they can eat.
Limits
Kids who have limits were allowed to eat as little as one piece a week to as many as 10 or 20 a day, though not all at the same time. Sometimes the rules are complicated.
Juliet, 10, is allowed to eat one-eighth of her candy on Halloween night and then 12 pieces a day after that. "I would say that if I could choose, I would have one-sixth of my candy on Halloween night. Then, 20 pieces every day after that," Juliet said.
The rules at Sophie's house are relaxed on Halloween, but after that she's not allowed to eat nearly as much as Juliet. "On Halloween, I can eat quite a bit, but not until I get home," said Sophie, 11. "After that it's usually one piece a day."
Kris, 8, says she doesn't have any limits on Halloween, but there's a big catch. "That night we can eat whatever we want and then Mom throws it away," Kris said.
Pete's mom limits his Halloween candy by giving a lot of it back out to the trick-or-treaters that same night. "She leaves a small bowl for us to eat, which we do in 2 days," said Pete, 10.
Allison, 12, has limits, too — seven pieces on Halloween and two per day after that. But she doesn't keep all that candy for herself. "After Halloween, I separate what I want to keep (20–30 pieces) and donate the rest, in little baggies, to the homeless shelter or soup kitchen," she said.
No Limits
Though most kids (60%) said parents should limit kids' candy intake, plenty of kids (50%) said they did not have any limits. But more than 60% of kids said they voluntarily set their own limits. Why? To avoid getting fat, feeling sick, or getting cavities in their teeth.
Thalia, 12, said she wants to be a healthy kid, especially because she's on a competitive swim team. "I'm kind of a 'Don't eat too much junk or you'll get fat' sort of person," she said. "I don't eat a lot of candy. I know what candy can do to your teeth and body, so I have limits on how much I should eat."
