There is entirely too much of a not-so-good thing around.
How is a parent to keep their children healthy and happy through it all ... especially if one of the children is diabetic?
We've struggled with that for more than ten years now. Candy is deemed a reward, a good thing when in reality it is not. Especially to a diabetic, but just as certainly to every child.
The truth is sugar is deadly for everyone ... in the long run.
We can't always say "No" to a child when candy is in question. Oftentimes it also hurts them to be singled out as "different" & given their own "special" candy. To them it isn't special, they just want to be normal & get the same junk everyone else gets without limits like everyone else ... BUT diabetics CAN'T.
Sometimes it would be nice to change the world ... yet in reality? Life doesn't work that way.
So, what do you do to treat you children?
We have found a few things that compensate: one is gum & candies made with the sweetener called xylitol. "Spry" is the brand we've come to enjoy ... it was first recommended to us by our dentist. The bonus? Xylitol inhibits cavities and though it does have a carbohydrate count it does not cause a spike in the blood sugar. Win/win!
We have tried the Spry gum in four flavors: cinnamon, spearmint, peppermint, and fruit flavored - they have a new green tea flavor out now.
The Spry mints/candies are in four great flavors: lemon, berry, peppermint, spearmint and a new raspberry that we haven't tried yet, but the rest are yummy!
More candy ideas here.
At our house, gummy vitamins and flavored vitamin C work as "treats" also. Yay for Mom, cause I like 2 for 1's!!!! Acidophilus rates right up there with candy among my littles too. Of course, we limit these to the rating on each bottle.
There are other treats of course, inedible ones like floss pics, erasers, etc, but I'm always looking for more ideas.
Do you have any ideas, favorite treats? Let me know in the comments below. Thanks so much for sharing.
Disclaimer: Check with your physician before using these suggestions. This post is not meant to be taken as medical advice.
Stickers are a huge "treat" in our house. I started each one with a sticker album( just a coiled note book) and every time they get a special sticker they put it in there.
ReplyDeleteI always commandeer their treat bags they get and keep them in my room that way most times stuff is forgotten about, I know it seems like a waste but I find creative ways to disperse of it without them noticing the source.
With heart disease and diabetes very prominent in Trevor's family I try very hard to set up good eating habits...it's especially hard because I am such chocolate lover. If I am going to eat chocolate I try to make it dark chocolate..I found a new treat at Costco, Dark Chocolate covered Acai berries and blueberries. I keep it in a very far away place that I really have to want it to get it.
Melanie, Good for you in keeping the sugar at bay, discreetly discarding? Love it! We were doing that b4 T1d too (& to date). The good news is that only a minute % of diabetics have it in their history.
ReplyDeleteDitto on the dark chocolate ... on acai & blueberries? That certainly does sound like a yummy healthy treat.