Too many Halloween treats prompt health warnings

By Solarina Ho

TORONTO (Reuters Life!) - While adults may relish the gore of Halloween, most children enjoy the night for another reason -- the vast amount of candy they receive which is prompting warnings to parents.

With concern growing about rising childhood obesity rates, medical experts advised parents to limit how much candy they allow their children to eat.

"I don't think the indiscretion of a single day or a couple of days around Halloween would have any measurable impact on that child's health," said Dr Michael Kramer, a child health and development expert at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).

But when the gluttony of Halloween stretches until the end of the year and beyond, it may be cause for concern.

If a child eats an extra 100 calories -- which does not seem like a lot -- every day for a year then it's 36,500 extra calories, which adds up, according to Kramer.

"In a sense our society has prolonged the Halloween experience," said Dr. Diane Finegood, a nutrition and diabetes expert at the CIHR.

Americans are likely to spend over $5 billion on the holiday, with nearly three-quarters of the population spending an average $20 worth of candy to hand out, according to a survey by the National Retail Federation

What about the rest of the year?