Sugar is not to blame.

We all had that one friend growing up who was always way too hyper. My friend was always bouncing off the walls so to speak. Her parents would never keep sugar in the house, no candy and no soda, ever. They always said she couldn't handle the sugar so she only got it on rare occasions. While perusing through the book for this class, I found the section about common myths of children's behavior and was shocked. I was always a believer in the power of a sugar rush, but in the end, it is not sugar that is completely at fault.

Often when children have sugar, it is for a special and exciting occasion, as the book says, a birthday party or holiday such as Halloween. In reality, the child is most likely overwhelmed and excited about the situation, and the situation in which the child is eating sugar is often overlooked by the parents, causing them to blame the sugar alone. The book also point out that parents who let their kids eat whatever they want, including sugar, are more likely to let their children run wild and act out, so the sugar is not completely to blame, but mostly the parenting and the learned personality of the child with less rules and structure.

The moral of the story is don't blame the sugar. It is not alone in the crazy behavior of children. Instead, try setting ground rules and teaching children how to behave at home and out in different places. Also, regulate the sugar your children eat, they can have some, but it is better to teach them how to regulate and watch their eating so it is something they are used to when they are teenagers and want to eat everything in sight.