Halloween Candy Tips for Kidney Diets

Happy Halloween! Today and throughout the weekend you are likely to be tempted by Halloween candy treats. Limit temptations and stay in control of your kidney diet with these ghostly Halloween candy tips. Don’t be tricked into letting your potassium, phosphorus, blood sugar or waistline float out of control!

• Purchase the best candy choices for your kidney diet. For example, if you can’t resist the chocolate covered nuts, don’t fool yourself into buying them. Instead, choose hard candies and use any leftovers to help control thirst.
• Munch into a caramel apple or homemade popcorn ball instead of candy.
• If you have diabetes, go for low sugar candy or plan the extra carbohydrates in your diet.  Save leftover sugar-containing candy for emergency use when you have a low blood sugar episode. Check your blood sugar more often. If your results are too high you will be less tempted to eat candy.
• Take a 10 to 15 minute walk or do an activity for each piece of candy you eat.
• Be aware of high potassium and high phosphorus ingredients like chocolate and nuts and avoid candies made with these ingredients.
• Purchase Halloween candy you don’t really like—you won’t be as tempted to eat it!
• After Halloween package extra candy and drop it off at a homeless shelter or send to a home-bound friend.
• Give away leftover candy—to the neighbors, take some to church, dialysis or anywhere there’s a crowd.
• Freeze leftover candy or store it in a container in the pantry. Out of sight, out of mind means less temptation.
• Avoid the candy isle in stores after Halloween—the fantastic sale prices may tempt you to buy unneeded candies.

Visit DaVita.com/recipes for special kidney-friendly Halloween recipes like Halloween Delight Cake, Popcorn Balls and Spooky Punch.

For more suggestions on kidney-friendly candy read the article Kidney-friendly Candy for Dialysis Patients.