Does anyone actually eat candy canes? Here are the 3 most popular Christmas candies kids in Massachusetts want in their stockings (2024)

FAQs

Do people actually eat candy canes? ›

Candy cane facts

93 percent of people gift chocolate and candy for the winter holidays. 72 percent of people eat a candy cane starting on the straight end, while 28 percent start on the curved end. 1.76 billion candy canes are produced every year for the holiday season.

Kit Kat ranked top in 13 states, followed by a tie between Skittles and candy canes. In a recent survey conducted by Hubscore, findings revealed that four in five Americans love to put candies in their Christmas stockings during the holiday season, while only a few preferred to fill them with small toys and gift cards.

(WHNT) – Peppermint bark, mini Reese's cups, and Starburst, oh my! Those are just a few of the most popular Christmas candies, according to a new report from CandyStore.com. However — the top candy varies from state to state.

“Legend has it that the candy cane dates back to 1670, when the choirmaster at the Cologne Cathedral in Germany handed out sugar sticks among his young singers to keep them quiet during the Living Creche ceremony,” Schildhaus says. “In honor of the occasion, he bent the candies into shepherds' crooks.”

Here's the truth, which may or may not surprise you: Candy canes don't really offer much in terms of nutrition. “They are primarily made of refined carbs and sugars, including fructose,” says Brocha Soloff, BS, RD, CDN, founder of iHeart Health.

Frequent exposure to candy canes can cause the sugar to stick to your teeth, giving the damaging bacteria in your mouth something to thrive off of. Candy canes are also a little sticky, so the sugar can be difficult to completely scrub away. When the sugar builds up, it can contribute to plaque and tooth decay.

One of the oldest traditional candies eaten for special occasions like Christmas is marzipan. This almond-based confection dates back centuries, with origins in Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. Each region has its own uses for the sweet.

In 1847, he made a candy to symbolize Christ. The cane's "J" shape stands for Jesus; when turned upside-down, it becomes a shepherd's staff. The white color signifies purity; the red represents Christ's blood, shed for the world's sins, and three red stripes symbolize the trinity.

"Things like candy canes or ribbon candy are good for well over a year, up to five years possibly. The sugar creates a matrix that holds it all together," said Allured. This is as long as you store it in a cool, dry place: "Humidity is the enemy."

What does a broken candy cane mean? ›

The white color is for purity, how Jesus was pure and sinless. White is also for the virgin birth. Finally, how you break the cane as you eat it represents how Christ's body was broken on the cross for us.

"A lot of folks think that reindeer eat carrots and candy canes because that's what they hear about and see in the movies," said Cheryl Reis, the owner of Reindeer Ridge farm in Guilford, Indiana. "Reindeer only have bottom teeth, so they would choke on carrots or candy canes."

A candy cane is a cane-shaped stick candy often associated with Christmastide, as well as Saint Nicholas Day. It is traditionally white with red stripes and flavored with peppermint, but the canes also come in a variety of other flavors and colors.

You can use for decorating, you can eat it, you can eat it while you're decorating, you can even eat it once it's hung on the wall. The possibilities are truly endless because it's candy and it's Christmas!!

While peppermint candy is a good snack in small amounts, it can add more calories to your daily diet if you eat it in large quantities. Consuming 20 candies in a single sitting is equivalent to 400 calories; eating them multiple times a week can quickly add up to 3,500 calories, resulting in a pound of fat in a month.