Sometimes the reason a person can't eat candy is because they have diabetes. Diabetes is when the amount of sugar in your blood gets too high. It can damage your eyes and your kidneys and slow down the blood circulation in your feet and fingers. If it's not treated it can actually kill you.

Diabetes is really one name for 2 diseases. One form of diabetes starts making a person sick when they are very young, even before they're old enough to go to school. Kids with this disease have to inject themselves with insulin every day. There's a second form of diabetes that we used to think only adults got. Now we see younger and younger people with this second kind of diabetes. People with this second kind of diabetes tend to be overweight, eat a lot of sugar and fat and not get enough exercise.

Food gives us energy, just like gas gives our cars energy to run. The energy is measured in calories. But we need to eat things besides just energy if we want to be healthy. Some of those things are minerals, such as iron and calcium, and vitamins.

(The gas for our cars has 'additives,' too, to make our cars run better. That's what lead did in our gas.) The good foods on the Food Pyramid have energy and vitamins and minerals - including vitamins that haven't been discovered yet, because we need more than just the vitamins in vitamin pills.

Scientists named the calories in candy "empty calories." That means they're calories that come from foods without vitamins and minerals. So you need to eat things besides candy, but a lot of people also live to very old ages even if they do some things that aren't very healthy.

Many of us grow up being told that candy is bad for our teeth. However, candy may be no worse at causing cavities than many of the other foods. Cavities are caused by bacteria within our mouths. These bacteria feast on food left on teeth after meals. The bacteria produce acid which eats into tooth enamel, creating cavities. Any food containing carbohydrates can be utilized by bacteria. This includes foods such as potato chips, crackers, breads, fruits, peanut butter, and pasta.

So if candy is no worse or better at causing cavities than other foods, why avoid it? Although candy provides the body with sugar (an energy source), candy does not provide the body with other nutrients vital to our growth. Eating candy constantly, young children may not be getting enough of the foods that provide them with needed proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals. The most important thing to do is balance your diet.

Eating any substance in excess can lead to health problems. So can eating too much candy. Make sure to brush your teeth after eating candy and other between-meal snacks.