Here’s why you can’t stop eating leftover Halloween candy

For many, Halloween is a wonderful time of year. It’s the perfect excuse to watch a scary movie, dress up, decorate and indulge in your favorite sugary treats.

For many waistlines, however, it can be the beginning of the descent into holiday weight gain, even in the days and weeks past the actual holiday.

So what causes the Halloween candy binge? And why can’t you stop picking your way through the pile of trick-or-treating leftovers?

Why Halloween candy is so addicting 

For starters, sugar actually activates many of the same reward centers of the brain as alcohol and drugs, including cocaine. Studies have supported the theory that, in some circumstances, access to sugar can lead to behavior and neurochemical changes that resemble the effects of substance abuse.

Even worse, many candies include a lot of fat and salt, which can activate pathways in your brain associated with pleasure and reward. The nostalgia associated with Halloween memories and childhood candies further reinforce these feelings.

How to stop overindulging on candy 

Elizabeth Zawila, a nutritionist at the Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital Health and Wellness Center, recommends limiting the amount of access you have to candy in your home or office. This makes it easier to avoid the temptation and be a mindful eater.

“If you start eating because you are hungry, there is a natural cue to stop once you are no longer hungry,” she says. “On the other hand, if you start eating for pleasure alone, there is no natural cue to stop. Eating these indulgent types of food remains pleasurable, usually until we are uncomfortably full and have totally missed the mark as far as when we should have quit indulging.”

When consuming Halloween candy – or French fries or ice cream or anything else – ask yourself if you really want or need more before you keep eating.

Zawila also advises that a healthy diet the rest of the year can help curb your sweet tooth before it devolves to a full-on binge.

“We tend to really like and crave the foods we eat most often,” she says. “If we are in the habit of preparing and eating healthy, whole foods, that is what we will ultimately want to eat most of the time, even if we deviate from time to time and indulge in sweets. In fact, indulging occasionally can help people overall stay on track with healthy eating.”

If you do fall off the wagon, it’s never too late to make good decisions about your health, Zawila says.

“Because we are only human, there will likely be times when we over-indulge in these pleasurable foods,” she says. “The key is to not wallow in guilty feelings about it and get right back on track with healthy eating.”

Are you trying to watch your weight? Take a free online quiz to learn your healthy weight range.