Kids with diabetes face a challenge on Halloween: what to do with all the candy. While their friends are busy consuming their trick-or-treat booty, kids with diabetes must be more careful.
There are many possible approaches to helping kids with diabetes enjoy Halloween, including:
- Exchange candy collected while trick-or-treating with something else, such as a small toy or money. Younger kids might like this, especially since they can get something more permanent than candy.
- Donate candy collected — or most of it — to a local children’s hospital or your community center. Older kids might feel good about helping other kids.
- Keep selected candy and fit it into your child’s meal plan. With carbohydrate counting and a fast-acting insulin such as Humalog or NovoLog, you can easily accommodate an occasional treat.
Alternatives to Candy
You may even wish to choose non-candy treats to give away (read: Children Are Happy With Toys or Candy at Halloween).
Some families give out Halloween-themed pencils, small plastic bugs, glow-in-the-dark rubber balls, or other small toys instead of candy. These kinds of items are readily available at local party-supply stores, or via mail-order from places (like Oriental Trading Company), or dollar stores.
Carbohydrate Values for Common Candies
| Candy |
|
Size/Package |
|
Carbs (g) |
| 3 Musketeers |
|
16 gram fun-sized bar |
|
12g |
| 3 Musketeers |
|
2.13 oz bar |
|
46g |
| Baby Ruth |
|
2 oz. bar |
|
37g |
| Baby Ruth |
|
1 fun size |
|
17g |
| Blow Pop sucker |
|
One sucker |
|
13g |
| Butterfinger |
|
2 oz. bar |
|
41g |
| Butterfinger |
|
22 gram-fun sized bar |
|
15g |
| Candy corn |
|
15 pieces |
|
15g |
| Dum Dum suckers |
|
One sucker |
|
5g |
| Gummy Bears |
|
11 pieces |
|
30g |
| Heath Bar |
|
1.4 oz. bar |
|
25g |
| Hershey’s Almond |
|
3 minis |
|
15g |
| Hershey’s Almond |
|
1.45oz. bar |
|
20g |
| Hershey’s Kisses |
|
6 pieces |
|
16g |
| Hershey’s Milk Chocolate bar |
|
snack size |
|
10g |
| Jolly Rancher |
|
1 piece |
|
6g |
| Kit Kat bar |
|
3 piece bar |
|
10g |
| KitKat |
|
1.5 oz. package |
|
26g |
| Licorice |
|
3 6-inch Twizzlers |
|
15g |
| M&M’s |
|
“Halloween” mini box |
|
10g |
| M&M’s, plain |
|
mini pack |
|
15g |
| M&M’s, plain |
|
1.69 oz bag |
|
34g |
| M&M’s, peanut |
|
mini pack |
|
13g |
| M&M’s, peanut |
|
1.74 oz bag |
|
30g |
| M&M’s, peanut butter |
|
1.69 oz bag |
|
27g |
| Milky Way |
|
2.15 oz bar |
|
43g |
| Milky Way |
|
fun-sized bar |
|
14g |
| Nestle’s Cruch |
|
1.5 oz |
|
28g |
| Nestle’s Crunch |
|
4 mini bars |
|
26g |
| Reese’s Cups |
|
2 regular-sized 1 oz cups |
|
18g |
| Reese’s mini cups |
|
4 1-oz mini cups |
|
16g |
| Skittles |
|
15 pieces |
|
15g |
| Skittles |
|
mini pack |
|
17.5g |
| Snicker’s |
|
fun size |
|
12g |
| Snickers |
|
2.07 oz. bar |
|
36g |
| Snickers |
|
20-gram fun-sized bar |
|
12g |
| Starburst |
|
4 pieces |
|
16g |
| Sweet Tarts |
|
mini packs – 5 packs |
|
13g |
| Tootsie Pop |
|
1 pop |
|
16g |
| Tootsie Roll midgets |
|
12 |
|
30g |
| Tootsie Rolls |
|
2 bars |
|
23g |
| Twix |
|
2 2-oz. cookies |
|
37g |
| Warheads |
|
5 |
|
13g |
| Whoopers |
|
8 Pieces |
|
15g |
| Whoppers |
|
1 small pouch |
|
16g |
| Wonka Pixie Stix |
|
Each (about 6 in. in length) |
|
2g |
|
Article Copyright Diabetes123 and Children with Diabetes
