Have you noticed how it’s become common practice for kids to give out candy canes with a Christmas card now? And how it seems like your child is getting one from just about every kid in the class? A few years ago our daughter received so many candy canes from her class that she willingly – and without argument – gave one to her brother! Since we hardly ever have this sort of ‘food’ (loose term) in the house, the fact she let him have one, instead of guarding it with her life, says something about how many she had.
Indrani, our 10 year old, saw a report this week on Behind The News about a school taking the bold step to ban candy canes this year. The school faced a massive backlash, and parents were up in arms, saying things like:
- “One candy cane is not going to hurt anyone.”
- “Candy canes have never killed anyone.”
- “One candy cane is not going to cause obesity.”
- “It’s not like candy canes are poison.”
- “Body shaming is bad, but body shaming with candy canes is even worse.”
- “Candy cane bans are ridiculous – let kids be kids and show friendship.”
Of course, all of these statements in isolation are true – a single candy cane has not killed anyone (well, except in some B grade horror films), and one candy cane is not going to cause obesity.
BUT, I want to congratulate the school for taking this action. We really need to look at the bigger picture:
- Obesity and Diabetes Type 2 is on the increase in Australian children;
- Sugar has infiltrated most of the 80,000 packaged food items on supermarket shelves, many of which are common in our homes;
- Many children’s school lunchboxes are loaded with packaged foods every day, filling each child’s body with sugar/additives/preservatives/colours;
- “Sometimes foods” are now everyday foods for many children;
- Our kids are now offered sugary foods as rewards or incentives by hairdressers, teachers and even at the doctor’s;
- Research has shown sugar is highly addictive, likened to cocaine, yet sugary foods which can harm our children’s health are often referred to as “treats”;
All of these things paint a picture of a generation of children who are unconsciously eating too much sugar already. And at Christmas time, this escalates exponentially.
Candy canes are not really the issue here. The issue is our kids are being taught to associate the acts of giving, kindness, and friendship with sugar.
As in my last 2 Christmas-related posts – Fun Healthy Food For School Christmas Parties and Better Chocolate Options For Christmas, this post is not about being a party pooper. I don’t want to stop your kids from being kids, or from giving and receiving gifts. This post is about something bigger – it’s about friendship, and a number of better options to the candy cane.
You can empower your kids to show kindness, compassion, and friendship by helping them apply a bit of thought and infusing their gifts with love.
Before diving into better options for the candy cane, let’s just take a closer look at the candy cane and sugar.
Why Are Candy Canes So Popular?
The short answer – marketing and manufacturing brilliance! Decorations such candy canes have long been associated with Christmas, as have lollies and the act of gift giving. Put all 3 together and what do you get? The good ol’ candy cane lolly.
Efficiencies in manufacturing means candy cane lollies can be produced in bulk, and bulk packaged into bags. As marketing brilliance would have it, they are packaged into bags of 30 – it’s no coincidence this is the perfect size for most classrooms. At $2.50 a bag (or 8 cents per candy cane) it makes it economical and so convenient to give the whole class a gift.
And of course, don’t underestimate the impact of what our kids’ peers are doing. We all know kids like to fit in, so once a couple of children do it, the other kids want to do it too.
Giving and receiving, showing friendship, being kind, does not have to involve sugar. Manufacturers and marketing have made it this way, but it doesn’t have to be. Let’s teach our kids there are loads of other ways to have fun, be a good friend and give.
What’s The Problem With Candy Canes?
If kids were having nothing but the odd candy cane here or there, there wouldn’t be a problem. The reality, however, is that at this time of year kids are receiving multiple candy canes in a week, or sometimes in a day. This is on top of any other sweets our kids are offered at this time of year. Some people say “but it’s a treat” – but let’s have a look at what’s in this treat.
What’s in 1 Candy Cane?
Using this bag of candy canes from Coles as an example, let’s break one down.
- Ingredients: Sugar, Glucose Syrup (from corn), Natural Colour 163, Natural Peppermint Oil (0.3%)
- 1 serve (1 candy cane) is 7.5g in weight
- 1 serve has 5.5g of sugar in it (73% sugar) = 1.5 teaspoons of sugar
- Natural Colour 163 is grape skin extract or blackcurrant extract. The Chemical Maze app says it’s generally safe for most people, but it also says natural colours can be high in salicylates, amines or glutamates and people sensitive to aspirin, amines or MSG may wish to avoid. It’s prohibited in foods for infants. May cause allergic and hyper-sensitive reactions
- It has also been found people who are sensitive to salicylates may also be affected by peppermint oil
Remember, the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendation kids should only have about 3 teaspoons of added sugar in a day, and older children or adults 5 or 6 teaspoons maximum. For a typical school-aged child, that’s half their sugar for their entire day in that 1 candy cane.
Some people will say “Don’t worry, they are just treats!” But let me ask you this, why do we call ‘food’ which doesn’t help our bodies, “a treat?”
What Happens At School?
When our kids get candy canes at school, they either eat them at school or bring them home to eat later.
If our kids are eating them at school:
- they are having extra sugar without us even knowing it,
- their teachers are dealing with the highs and crashes which follow, and
- you lose track of how many candy canes and how much sugar they have
If our kids are bringing them home:
- it’s probably better because at least we know what they are eating,
- we can drip feed them out appropriately, and
- you can also show them how much sugar there is in the candy canes they have collected.
TIPS: Educate your children about what’s in one candy cane. Visually show them how much sugar is in one, then about how that’s almost half of what they should have in a day. Let them know you want them to bring candy canes home first so you can look at the sugar content they’ve already eaten for the day. Educate them in how sugar can affect their behaviour and concentration. Tell them that you want them to be the best version of themselves they can be, particularly at school where they learn.
What Are We Teaching Our Kids About Friendship?
One of the arguments about giving a candy cane is about allowing kids to give gifts to their friends. But in doing this, what are we teaching kids about friendship? That it’s easy, and every relationship is the same?
Friendships are special, and they deserve to be treated as such.
The truth of friendship is it requires time, thought and effort. In return for this time, thought and effort, you get to have fun, support and comfort. From a kid’s perspective, depending on their age, a friend is someone they run around the playground with or play sport with. As they get older, it’s about someone they can relate to, they can be there for you and you for them. In adulthood, our friends are those we can’t wait to share good news with and you can turn to for support in tough times.
Our 10 year daughter said something interesting to me when I was writing this today. She said,
Anyone’s mum can buy a bag of candy canes, but you can’t buy love.
This comes after she has spent many afternoons after school hand drawing cards for her close friends. Each card is different and says something about each of her friends. For instance, one has a dog on it because her friend just got a puppy. Another has a bottle of nail polish on it because this friend is quite girly and loves make up and nail polish. Her statement says there is an element of love she feels for her close friends. Wouldn’t you feel special as a friend if you got one of these?
In years gone by, a Christmas card was given to a handful of friends. You might be lucky enough to get a box of 10, and you would carefully select which picture on the card best suited what friend. Your best friend would get the cutest or best picture and so on. Nowadays, cards and candy canes are given out to a wider group of kids, in some cases to the whole class, and everyone gets pretty much the same. Everyone is treated the same.
Does a gift of a sugary candy cane equal friendship? Or is it I got one, so I should give one too? Or everyone else is doing it, so I should? So what exactly are we teaching our kids about friendship?
A sugary candy cane given to the masses does not equal friendship. Let’s empower our kids to know friendships are special, they require love, time and effort.
If you think of this from the child on the receiving end of the candy cane and card, do they feel special, like a friend or are they just like everyone else?
Why not ask your child which friends are special to them, and that they would like to thank for being a good friend. These are the friends who really deserve a card and perhaps a small gift showing your child’s love and appreciation.
Better Options To Candy Canes
Here’s some better options to candy canes. Yes, they require a little more effort and perhaps a little more money, but they are better for the health of the kids on the receiving end, and it’s teaching your children the value of taking time and effort to create gifts. Your child will feel pretty special giving these gifts – they are so much more thoughtful than the same candy cane everyone else is giving.
If your child wants to give lots of people cards and gifts
Reindeer Poop
Use my chocolate protein bomb recipe to make tiny balls of reindeer poop and pop them in a small paper bag. Here’s a couple of cute labels I found that you may like to use. Kids love anything poo or fart related, so this gift is bound to be a hit.
Reindeer Food
I found this idea for reindeer food on Natural New Age Mum’s website. This is as simple as mixing up some oats with some natural glitter, and popping it in a paper bag, and sticking on a label. Visit Natural New Age Mum to get all the details.
Stickers or Pencils
Stores like Kmart and The Reject Shop sell loads of Christmas Stickers or Christmas Pencils. These would make good inexpensive gifts to go with Christmas cards.
If your child wants to gift close friends only
Homemade Caramel Popcorn
This is a gift our daughter and I made a couple of years ago for her special friends. My Caramel Popcorn recipe is refined sugar free and delicious.
Handmade Cards and Small Handmade Gift
Have your child think about which friends are special, then get them to write a few points about each one of these people. For instance, what they like, or why they are special. Now get your child to draw a card specific for that person. You may also ask them to think about what craft things they have at home which they could use to make gifts. Indrani made each of her friends little bracelets with beads she was given for a Christmas present last year from her granny. So these gifts have a story too – they are made from a gift Indrani had been given. (You can see these in the picture above in the friendship section).
Handmade Decoration For The Christmas Tree
What child doesn’t love putting up their Christmas tree or looking at it? How special would it be for them to have a decoration on the tree, every year, that reminds them of their friendship with your child. Check out these awesome ideas on Hands On As We Grow.
What To Do With All Your Kids Candy Canes?
If your kids have received candy canes and you really don’t want them eating them all, here’s a few ideas on what you can do with them:
- Keep educating your kids about giving, and ask them to donate their candy canes to shelters for children or nursing homes;
- Get your kids to hang them on the Christmas Tree, and then guests can take one when they arrive;
- Turn them into gifts by making them into love hearts – here’s a how to tutorial;
- Make Candy Cane Chocolate Bark and share it around with your family and friends at Christmas;
- Turn them into a Candy Cane Love Heart Lolly Pop and give as gifts;
- Candy Cane Vodka (parents only, obvs!) – add crushed candy cane to a bottle of Vodka. Evidently it gives it a minty kick but you don’t get the sweetness;
And as usual, I have some parting words.
Friendship, giving and kindness DOES NOT have to involve sugar.
Let’s encourage our children to undertake these acts in a way in which they are truly valued. Encourage them to be really think about the person they are gifting, encourage them to take their time and apply loving effort to the act of giving. To really make the gift for their friend meaningful. After all, friendship is special and not “one size fits all”.
Do you have any suggestions for other Christmas gifts that would work in a classroom setting? Or maybe you have your own thoughts about candy canes at this time of year? I’d love to hear from you, so leave a comment below, and let’s continue the conversation!