Hope everyone had a happy Halloween!

[patty]

I know many of us parents crinch during this holiday season because of the artifical sugar junks. We are doing a buy back program for my kids and also let them use the candies to make mud pies (smashing various cholcolate candies along with other gummy body parts and various hard candies in a plastic zip log bag). My son actually came up with this project. He went as far as labeling the candy ingredients, with the label "Organic Candies". I thought that was pretty funny. We able able to eliminate 90% of the candies. Now, only if i can get the remainders w/o taking all the fun out of Halloween!

 

Pat

[kim]

Patty,

 

That candy mud pie, is a great idea. I bet I could get my youngest son to go for that.

 

Tell your son, thanks for me!

[faith]

Yea, "cringe" about says it!...

 

Just curious if anyone has noticed any adverse effects from the halloween treats if their kids have had any.

 

I've let my son have some treats and while he's not doing great, its not that bad either, so I am keeping my eye out. He doesn't seem to have immediate reactions, so I have to just make sure its not too much, but Halloween is is favorite and I just have to balance the fun and health.

 

And if anyone doesn't believe in the affects of candies and such, just to relay, yesterday my son had two friends over, and they did dip into the Halloween bowl a bit -- one of them consumed about 6 candy bars in three minutes! And let me tell you, pretty much immediately after that, these three were off the wall wild, running all over my house and laughing and fooling like mad! I had to hold down my china and throw them out on the front lawn!

 

Faith

 

P.S. Also the morning after Halloween, my son had a particularly irritable morning and was acting very fresh and difficult. So, tics aside, I really believe all that junk affects them in more ways than one!

[Calicat]

Faith,

I'm seeing similar effects. I held my breath and let my daughter have a few junky things. It didn't seem to affect tics, but she has always shown a strangeness/hyperness/moodiness with certain junk (although I've yet to figure out exactly which additives it is, or how much it takes). I wonder if she had less of a reaction this time because she's been hardly having any junk, plus she's on the supplement regimen... maybe a supported and healing body can handle more. Just this past May, before her program was in place, we had a picnic with chocolate soy milk, chicken fingers, chips, etc. and she started ticcing like MAD within the hour, and it lasted for hours! I'm so glad something is helping her body stay more stable. (Thank goodness for this forum and all the help and great suggestions!!!)

 

In our house, we are having a visit from the Pumpkin Fairy, who will take a pile of candy in exchange for a new fun toy. I also let her choose about 10 treats to keep and have a little at a time. So far, so good (crossing fingers).

 

Calicat

[patty]

Calicat,

 

I like the pumpkin fairy idea. I will try that next year. Thx!

 

Pat

[michele]

I hid the candy immediately. I have been doing my best to reroute him when he gets the urge to get a piece. For the most part he seems to forget but when the girls get a piece he gets whiney. He asks me today will I have to do this diet when I grow up. He also asks what Dr. put me on the diet? I've got to admit he does better with tolerating it then I would ever have imagined. As moody and tempermental as he can get I am surprised we don't battle over the diet more. I think donating the candy to a charity is also a good idea.

Michele

 

I know many of us parents crinch during this holiday season because of the artifical sugar junks. We are doing a buy back program for my kids and also let them use the candies to make mud pies (smashing various cholcolate candies along with other gummy body parts and various hard candies in a plastic zip log bag). My son actually came up with this project. He went as far as labeling the candy ingredients, with the label "Organic Candies". I thought that was pretty funny. We able able to eliminate 90% of the candies. Now, only if i can get the remainders w/o taking all the fun out of Halloween!

 

Pat

[Tattoomom]

The pumpkin fairy is a great one. I've also heard of people using "The Great Pumpkin" coming to visit and taking the candy.

 

This year, I bought my kids candy off of them! Aside from letting them have a few pieces of their favorites, I paid them each $10 in exchange for their buckets and they were able to spend their money however they wanted.

 

It worked! And then I donated the leftover candy to a group that will be sending it to the troops in Iraq!

[Hope]

My son's tics had become really mild and then Halloween came! He only had one piece Halloween night but at a Cub Scout party he had a few because I was busy with the girls and wasn't watching every moment. All the other kids were eating like crazy so he followed suit, of course.

 

Since then, I have let each of my kids have one piece after dinner. That isn't much but I still see the tics more than before. I am thinking of buying off the remaining candy or exchanging it for a toy. Great ideas!

 

The trick-or-treating is fun but the candy is not necessary! We were doing so well with healthy eating before Halloween!

[QsMom]

I wanted to report in on our Halloween experience. We let my son have a few peices of candy along with a special goodie bag we made for him of "acceptable treats." Since he has issues with milk, he chose some gummy candies chalked with varies dyes and sugar.

 

The next day his behavior was terrible! He was constantly moving and touching things. We've been on Feingold since the summer, and I have not seen this type of behavior for some time. Good news is his tics did not come back, and I am thankful for that. The behavior issues too went away after 2 days, and he was back to being a sweet, cooperative little boy.

 

I am more convinced than ever of the food, tic, behavior connection.

 

Love the ideas on how to exchange the remaining candy sitting in my pantry!

[tlkinser]

I took my three children (ages 6.5, 5, and 3.5) to Target the night before Halloween and gave them each the option of keeping the candy they were going to get, or picking out anything they wanted ($10 each). They all chose the toy! They couldn't wait to get home from trick-or-treating and give up their candy for their new toy. I couldn't believe how smoothly the whole thing went. (I did let them each pick out 3 pieces of candy and made sure my ds didn't choose anything with red or colors.) I was dreading the entire "holiday", but the schools were really good about not giving out candy and my children ended up being very cooperative about the trade-in. It really wasn't bad at all.

 

Now, if my dh would just get rid of the endless bag of candy that he promised he'd take to work! I keep dipping into it- ugh!

 

tlk

[aj104]

My daughter hasn't really ticced much since April. We first noticed her tics last February, so they lasted a few months and then all but went away. Now, Halloween was on a Wednesday and by Saturday she was ticcing noticably. Shoulder shrugs and head movements. Of course, she has been eating the candy. Skittles, chocalate, peanut butter cups. Cause and effect, I don't know but it sure makes me wonder! Nonetheless, I told her no more candy for awhile and yesterday hardly saw any ticcing at all?

[patty]

Interesting, how some people see such clear correlation between food & tics. I think it is great that you have great observation, it makes it alittle easier to deal with her tics.

 

Did your daughter tic at all between April to Holloween? If not, was she eating any candies? Perhaps, your daughter has a threhold. She can tolerate minimal amount of candies and when she reached her trehold, she tics as a result of food intolerance.

 

Pat

[aj104]

Patty,

 

Between April and Halloween, she hardly ticced at all. If anything, maybe a nose wrinkle and grimace here and there, but nowhere near what she did from February to April. After Halloween night, it was noticable, much like it was in February and March. My daughter even commented herself that she was doing alot of shoulder shrugging. Yesterday there was nothing at all. I do remember when I first noticed them in February, the night before, we went to a chinese buffet and they have this ice cream making machine. She made herself an ice cream that night and I have often wondered if that had anything to do with it.

 

We never really put her on any type of diet modification. She eats normally, which includes basically anything, but never in any excess. She has had candy, ice cream, chips ect.. since April but maybe there is a threshold factor. Very interesting stuff.

[bmom]

Just curious on your daughter, Did you try any of the suppplements or did it just stop? Has she been sick recently?