24°c Partly cloudy
25°c Chance of thundershowers
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Don't get spooked by Halloween candy
Related Items
-
Articles
-
Columns
VANCOUVER -- There's no need for parents to get spooked about the chocolate choices they'll have to make for their little ghosts and goblins this Halloween, says a Vancouver-area dietitian and author.
In fact, Gloria Tsang said all parents need to do is peek at the lists of ingredients haunting the wrappers of mass-produced chocolate and candy bars.
If parents don't know what an ingredient is or have difficulty pronouncing its name then that product may best be relegated to the realm of the grim reaper.
"The candy that we purchase from the grocery store, we know they are not high-quality candies," said Tsang, a resident of Maple Ridge, B.C.
"Instead of looking at the calories and fat and sugar that most people look at, we actually look at the ingredient list. We feel that it is more clear to look at the ingredient so that we know what that product is actually made from."
Tsang is the author of the recently published book Go UnDiet: 50 Small Actions for Lasting Weight Loss, and she's been more than an apparition in the media, materializing in print publications, as well as on radio, TV and online sites.
As a teenager, Tsang was an avid trick-or-treater in the Vancouver area, and as an adult she transferred her passion for Halloween into her profession as a dietitian.
While Tsang is still an idealist about nutritional matters, she said she also lives in the real world and even her daughter and husband enjoy candy and potato chips at those not-so-spooky times of year.
She said none of the mass-produced chocolates or candies are actually good, but if parents are going to buy them they should watch for artificial colours and emulsifiers -- additives used in processed foods.
Not only are they not natural, said Tsang, but one product known as Yellow No. 5 has been associated with hyper sensitivity and hyper activity in children.
When it comes to wafer candy bars, products like Kit Kat and Twix, parents should chose the chocolate bars with the shorter list of ingredients, said Tsang.
As for peanut-based candy bars, products like Snickers and Reese's, parents should chose the product without hydrogenated vegetable oils on their lists of ingredients.
"There's no reason to have trans fat in our food," added Lisa Forster-Coull, nutritionist for B.C.'s Ministry of Health. "There are alternate sources of fat that are healthier. Trans fat is the least healthy fat that we can have and it puts us at risk for heart disease."
Greg Hook, owner of Vancouver's Chocolate Arts, said most commercial products have only a thin layer of chocolate and are just candy bars masquerading as chocolate bars.
Hook said parents should mellow out, let their children indulge in a couple of treats and monitor their diets the rest of the year.
"At Halloween, they're going and trick or treating, essentially they're coming home with a bag of garbage," he said.
If people want to hand out real chocolate, said Hook, dark chocolate is better than milk chocolate because it has less sugar.
Tsang agrees that parents shouldn't get too stressed out.
-- The Canadian Press
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition October 31, 2011 D1
More Life & Style
- Back to Top
- Return to Life & Style
Poll
Most Popular Life & Style
- Indiegogo defends campaign for Toronto Mayor Rob Ford's alleged crack video
- Baked Alaska: Unusual heat wave hits north, with temps topping 80 degrees (26C) in Anchorage
- U.S. court upholds Canadian company's patent for couples vibrator
- Just for kicks: shoe swap hits town
- Two Alberta family doctors suspended over inappropriate patient relationships
- B.C. says hikers can depend on mobile maps in woods, but rescue group concerned
- Recipes for potato salad, chicken drumettes and luscious lemon buttermilk cake
- Pets of the week
- JULY FOURTH: Recipe for 3-pepper barbecue potato salad
- The old wooden church
- Even elite athletes sometimes feel depressed after completing a marathon
- Apple's big week
- Just for kicks: shoe swap hits town
- Make it look natural; companies work to make packaged foods appear homespun
- Study shows commonly prescribed statin drugs and some antibiotics can interact
- Small-town Ohio police chief gives quick repercussion for criminals through Facebook floggings
- Ontario workers who fear chemical made them sick told to file claim
- Doctors say public purse and public health at risk because of government cuts
- More than 400 people ordered to leave homes in Fort McMurray due to flooding
- The old wooden church
- Deadly liver cancer on the rise, but half of cases preventable: Cancer Society
- Climate change keeping early birds from getting worms: study
- Overabundance of carp threatening ecosystem at Saskatchewan's Wascana Lake
- Doc's memoir portrays ERs as frantic, funny, frightening ... but never dull
- Carb-loading and sports drinks: debunking marathon myths
- Two dead, one injured after helicopter crashes north of Fort McMurray, Alberta
- You can't break bad eating patterns, but you can modify them to your advantage
- Magazine's creator says style has no size
- Dr. Henry Morgentaler, the controversial abortion rights crusader, dead at 90
- Even elite athletes sometimes feel depressed after completing a marathon
- Website helps Parkinson's patients avoid protein-medication interaction
- Conflict resolution, aboriginal-style
- It’s all in your mind
- Groin soreness sign of testicular cancer
- Recipes for potato salad, chicken drumettes and luscious lemon buttermilk cake
- Baked Alaska: Unusual heat wave hits north, with temps topping 80 degrees (26C) in Anchorage
- Canadian high school seniors in worse health than first-years. study shows
- Study shows commonly prescribed statin drugs and some antibiotics can interact
- Even elite athletes sometimes feel depressed after completing a marathon
- Website helps Parkinson's patients avoid protein-medication interaction
- The old wooden church
- Groin soreness sign of testicular cancer
- Adrenal fatigue can have significant impact
- Turks and chaos
- Poor preschooler eating habits can raise cholesterol, set stage for heart disease
- Make it look natural; companies work to make packaged foods appear homespun
- Just for kicks: shoe swap hits town
- Doc's memoir portrays ERs as frantic, funny, frightening ... but never dull
- Cramping their style
- Specialist moving to Toronto after 23 years at cutting-edge sleep lab
- Markdown maven tells world of Winnipeg deals
- Carb-loading and sports drinks: debunking marathon myths
- Iron overload often missed diagnosis for heart problems
- You can't break bad eating patterns, but you can modify them to your advantage
- Yaz and Yasmin pills linked to 23 deaths, say Health Canada documents
- His nose knows: City perfume maker can concoct your personal aroma
- Genealogical searches connect present to past
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
Have Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscribers only. why?
Login SubscribeHave Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press Subscribers only. why?
SubscribeThe Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.