Trick-or-treating with diabetes
Children who have diabetes can still enjoy treats on Halloween. Parkland Dietitian Sharon Cox says it is important to make sure kids with type 1 diabetes get enough insulin to balance the carbohydrates (carbs) in the candy. If a child has type 2 diabetes, follow their food plan to prevent very high blood sugar.
After trick-or-treating is over, it can be helpful to sit down with your child and ask them to pick out a few of their favorite candies. Trade the rest of the candy for other items, like stickers, pencils or bouncy balls.
Each of these are equal to about 15 grams of carbs:
- 11 candy corns
- Four Starbursts
- Small packet of gummy fruits
- Five LifeSavers gummies
- Smarties (six grams of carbs in each roll)
- Three small Tootsie Rolls
- 15 Skittles
- Two Jolly Ranchers
- One Tootsie Pop
Watch for the amount (grams) of carbs in the sweets and always check the nutrition labels.
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