Parents who blame Halloween meltdowns on mini Snickers may want to look elsewhere. In the AtlanticOlga Khazan presents decades of research showing that sugar doesn’t make kids bounce off the walls, even though it’s become the leading explanation for the couch-jumping mayhem. She cites landmark studies from the 1980s and 1990s led by pediatrician Mark Wolraich, who repeatedly found no significant difference in children’s behavior or thinking between a high-sugar diet and a low-sugar diet, or between a sugary drink and a sugar-free diet.
So why does the legend persist? Khazan reports that parties and vacations — when candy flows most freely — are already loud and overstimulating, making sugar an easy scapegoat. Expectations also play a role: In one study, mothers reported that their child had just consumed a lot of sugar and rated them as more hyperactive, even though the “sugar” was actually a placebo. Experts still warn against chronic sugar overload for long-term health, but say occasional splurges, including Halloween shopping, are OK. For the full arguments against the “sugar rush” and what’s really causing the chaos among children, read the original article in the Atlantic.
Gn Health
