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Lucy Huber's avatar

I find the less we limit sugar, the less appealing it is to kids. I feel like every Halloween I see posts about different ways to limit candy or throw away candy or slowly distribute the candy but so far we’ve just put it out in a bowl and let the kids take it if they want it and after about 2-3 days they become completely blind to it and forget it even exists. This seems to happen with most things! That being said my 2yo won’t stop asking for a bowl of sprinkles instead of eating a meal so what do I know.

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Laura's avatar

I've found that sugar can pull double duty, especially as a sometimes treat that is conveniently not in the house all the time. Popsicles make being sick less of a bummer, a brownie has paused a meltdown AND gotten a kid into the car for a non-preferred outing... Idk, I like the way that an enjoyable food experience can make the standard parts of life less irritating. That probably makes me a bribery parent, though I try to not make the casual relationship known (more "here's a brownie. Let's get in the car." And less "the brownie is contingent on your cooperation."). Ymmv for sure, but these days I err on your side, thinking that some good for the soul sugar memories can hopefully blunt the appeal of the least nutrient-dense forms of sugar when kids inevitably taste them at someone's house. Solid spongebob-based wisdom here!

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