Haunted houses and creepy costumes aren’t the only frightening things roaming the streets on Halloween night – the number of sugar kids consumes in one night is genuinely terrifying! While one night of overindulgence may not seem like the end of the world, it’s actually the face of a much bigger issue facing our country. To better understand what these trick-or-treating bags may mean for the future, let’s take a look at how much candy is really consumed.

How Much Candy is it?

On the night of Halloween children in the US are estimated to consume roughly 7,000 calories worth of candy alone. That figure is per child, not per town or even per street. Those 7,000 calories hold nearly 675 grams of sugar! No wonder the kids can’t go to sleep when they’re done! Of course, Halloween is a special occasion, and there’s no way your child will want to consume the recommended amount of 4 small pieces or less. Parents are guilty of sneaking plenty of candy out of the children’s bag as well, so that figure doesn’t even account for the sugar consumed by adults on Halloween night.

What Does That Mean?

So, what does all of that extra sugar mean for your child? A night of indulgence won’t cause problems, but you may be encouraging an unhealthy habit for them in the future. Some of the statistics facing US adults today will give you a better look at what those unhealthy habits can lead to:

• 1 in 3 US adults are prediabetic
• Prediabetic adults can’t correctly process sugar and carbohydrates
• Regular overindulgence at the prediabetic stage may lead to diabetes in just a few short years

While Halloween should be a fun time for dressing up and eating candy, it’s also a great time to teach your child about portion control and healthy habits. Indulging is okay, but the meals before and after Halloween night need to be a bit sturdier to compensate. As a parent, you should be regularly checked for signs of prediabetes and if you’re diagnosed, stealing candy from the kids’ bags probably isn’t a good idea. The kids should know from a young age that Halloween is one night only. A great way to enforce that concept is by portioning out any leftover candy they have in reasonable amounts.