What to do with all that Halloween candy

You better believe all that Halloween candy can do a number on your teeth.

But of course, there are other reasons not to overindulge the sweet rewards of trick-or-treating.

So what should you do with all that candy?

Halloween is a big deal to Marcie Kuhlmann of Golden Valley and her three kids. Her daughter's going to be a princess. Her son says he's going to be, "a plower." She's not sure if he means a plow or a flower.

Kuhlmann says when her kids go trick-or-treating tomorrow night, she'll limit how many pieces of candy they can have. "We need to definitely regulate or they're literally bouncing off the walls and off each other."

Abigail Gewirtz, an assistant professor of family social science at the University of Minnesota says, "One of the most important, if not the most important task, of childhood, early childhood to middle childhood, is learning to control to regulate your own behavior."

So Gewirtz says Halloween is a great time to teach kids self control.

She says negotiate how many pieces of candy they can have each day. "Bring your kids on board. Listen to what they're saying. Build a mutually respectful environment where they learn that you'll help them if they can't control themselves."

If your children collect too much candy, some area dentists will buy it back, in most cases, for a dollar per pound.

Last year, staff members at Reese Orthodontics in New Hope collected around 300 pounds.

Until this year, they've just bought candy back from clients. Orthodontist Karen Reese says, "...so they weren't tempted to eat some of those candies and have broken braces and wires."

But now they've opened their buy-back program to any child.

For every dollar they pay a child, they will also donate a dollar to the food shelf.

The candy then goes to the food shelf and troops overseas.

But Reese says it doesn't mean kids should turn in all their candy. "As long as they're practicing good oral hygiene habits, a little bit is not going to be harmful to a person."

If you're looking for more specifics on how much candy your kids should have, another health expert says it's okay to give 4 or 5 pieces on the night of Halloween. But then you may want to limit candy to 2 or 3 pieces a day or every other day.

By Renee Tessman, KARE 11 News

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