The 7 Worst Kinds Of Halloween Candy For WA Kids

It's October in Washington State, and Halloween is knocking on the door...and soon enough, so too will a horde of neighborhood kids with their decorated bags and hollow plastic pumpkins stretched out in expectation of them being filled with plenty of trick-or-treat candy.

Although most of us love candy of one kind or another, the awful truth is that it simply isn't good for us - not even a little bit. It's loaded with sugar, synthetic additives, and in some cases dyes and other agents which no part of our physical body wants or needs to remain healthy...and yet we do seem to crave it insatiably thanks to our old friend, the tongue!

While adults are included in this inconvenient fact just the same as children, it's the kids we might worry about a little more than the grown-ups when it comes to avoiding candy, either entirely or at least in large portions. There are also some candy varieties that are far worse than others for children, and for all of you parents and guardians who might not be averse to checking your little masquerader's Halloween haul, we're providing you with a list of the seven types of candy which are considered the worst for kids to ingest.

Our list has been compiled using the opinions of pediatricians, pediatric dentists, health organizations, and others whose primary mission in the world is to help in safeguarding children from harm.

So let's see which spooky treats might be waiting in your costumed candy crusader's bag of treats this year.

BUBBLEGUM

Our good pal bubblegum - as well as all chewing gums which have a high sugar content for that matter, are not the best choice for young Frankenstein's monsters and the like because of how long they can last.

And while this might seem like a fantastic fact to the Violet Beauregardes of the world, it's actually not, since that means a child's teeth can be exposed to the sugars in such gums for a much longer period of time.

All chewing gum can also get stuck and literally gum up a child's braces or loosen any other dental fittings they might already have.

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CANDY CORN

Yes, we know it's an autumnal favorite for kids to munch on, but the simple truth is that candy corn is basically pure sugar, and that makes it an especially devilish trick - even when compared to other cloying treats!

While it's true that all candy contains a wealth of sugar, varieties like candy corn; jellybeans; cotton candy; Jolly Ranchers; and Pixy Stix are essentially nothing but, and that makes them a worse choice than other selections for kids come Halloweentime.

CARAMELS

I can't say I've known too many people in my lifetime who haven't loved caramels. After all, these little cubes of creamy brown confection embody just about everything we love about candy in general; they're sweet; they're creamy; and you can savor them either slowly by sucking on them or dive right in and pull them apart with your teeth.

And therein lies the problem. You see, caramels are extremely sticky and the residue they leave behind on a child's teeth can be difficult, if not impossible to remove with a simple toothbrush. That makes caramels a big source of potential tooth decay, since the bacteria which cause cavities to form can be left to linger for lengthy periods and not abate until the damage is already done.

Yes, I know it was the omni-gruff Wilbur Wonka, D.D.S. in the 2005 version of Charlie & The Chocolate Factory who singled out caramels from his son Willy's bowl as one of the worst perpetrators for potential tooth decay - and therefore, was the ripest for parental confiscation. But if you've ever paid enough of your kid's dental bills or gotten old enough to watch them grow up to need dentures themselves, you might just be forced to agree with him.

JAWBREAKERS

Even the name of this candy suggests it might not be a good idea to try and tackle.

In addition to the very slim possibility that jawbreakers might actually break your jaw - if enough other variables are in play that is, they also reside in the same camp as candy corn, since they're made with a lot more sugar than many other candy types.

In addition to their alarming amount of what's not good for your teeth, they also present a choking hazard, since they are hard and in many cases sizeable enough to become lodged in a child's throat.

LOLLIPOPS

File these saccharin little gems on a stick (also called 'suckers') in the same camp as jawbreakers and candy corn, as lollipops are again - nothing but pure sugar and are also both a choking hazard and a risk for poking out eyes or stabbing at soft pallets and nasal cavities.

SOUR PATCH KIDS

Okay, it's not just Sour Patch Kids proper that are the problem, but any of the many varieties of candy which features the same or a similar sour coating.

Yes, while children love to discover their mouth's innate ability to pucker uncontrollably when presented with healthy shakes of citric and tartaric acids, the issue lies in these substances ability to rapidly erode tooth enamel, especially that of a young child's.

So it doesn't matter if it's worms, bears, or those alien looking things with the google can eyes the folks at Mondelez International call 'kids', if it comes from the candy patch we know as 'sour', then I'm afraid it's a rotten choice for certain.

TAFFY

Just like our sweet friend, the caramel, taffy can also land children in the same sticky situation.

Name brand taffies, such as Perfeftti Van Melle's Airheads, along with other selections from the taffy tree, including classics like individually-wrapped traditional salt water taffy, are all apt to stick in the crevasses and unreachable confines of a child's teeth - and we know what that means already.

Also, just like bubblegum, taffy can wreak havoc on any orthodontic implements or early dental fittings.