Food
10 Banned Candies That Can Kill
Everyone is guilty of liking candy. Whether it’s a sweet chocolate bar or a sour little gummy, we’ve all got our favorites. As much as we love candy, we can all agree that it’s not the healthiest thing for us to eat. But just how bad can it be? How would you feel if you knew that some of these sweet indulgences could put you six feet under? Well, you’re about to find out as we list 10 Banned Candies That Can Kill You!
10. Hippy Sippy
The 1960s are notorious for being, let’s say, a little experimental. Made in 1968 and imported from Japan, Hippy Sippy was living proof that just about anything could make it onto the market back in the 60s. This candy was a plastic toy filled with multi-colored pellets. So far, so good, but to get to the chocolate, you needed to suck on a hypodermic-like needle, which is often associated with drug use. So there’s that. Oh, and the colorful chocolate balls were meant to represent uppers and downers. Literally designed to replicate the hippy culture, it’s easy to see how Hippy Sippys didn’t exactly make parents feel all warm and fuzzy. Encouraging kids to even pretend to take illicit substances isn’t good for anybody. To make things even worse, a button was attached to the thin tip, branded with sayings like “I’ll Try Anything” and “We Sell Happiness.” This product was definitely sending the wrong message to kids, indirectly saying that “taking illicit substances was fun.” Glamorizing this bad habit could have an impact on the possibility of future drug use. Needless to say, these “experimental” candies didn’t last very long on the shelves and they were pulled only after a year. If you’re curious, though, you can find some on eBay… But not for cheap!
9. Toxic Waste Chew Bar
Okay, with a name like Toxic Waste, you can already kind of guess that this candy isn’t good for you in any way whatsoever. But then again, is any candy ever really safe? The Toxic Waste Chew Bar was a candy imported from Pakistan and its claim to fame was its extreme and unmatched sourness, and apparently, its ability to kill you. The Nuclear Sludge variety was launched back in 2007 but was discontinued in 2011 after some health concerns were raised. After conducting a lot of tests, the FDA deemed it unsafe to eat and recommended that the Nuclear Sludge Chew Bar not be consumed anymore. Was it really that surprising, though? You see, the candy was wrapped in bright yellow caution-like tape, and the company’s website featured the screech of a blaring warning horn; what did people expect? The results were in, and the U.S. distributor of Nuclear Sludge chew bars began recalling the candy after a significant level of lead was found in the bars! Almost 3 times the accepted lead levels! No one had been sick from eating the candy yet, but the FDA said the elevated lead content could potentially be harmful to small children, infants, and pregnant women. So, in a case of “better safe than sorry”, it was pulled and banned from the U.S.
8. Haribo Sugar-Free Gummy Bears
Haribo undoubtedly makes some of the best Gummy Bears on the market! With unique and flavorful products, they really know how to make the sweet and chewy stuff that people love. However, the company has known a few failures over the years. Like the time they tried to make their Sugar-free Gummy Bears. Cutting out sugar is a noble goal. After all, sugar is bad for you and damages your teeth – so the idea was good. But, the execution? Not so much. You see, in 2014, the poor sugar-free gummy bears gathered quite a bit of attention when people started to notice some undesirable side-effects following the consumption of the candy. Why is that? Well, because Haribo chose to replace the sugar in their gummy bears with Lycasin. Lycasin is a substance almost as sweet as sugar, known as a sugar alcohol, and contains half the calories. As much as this sounds like it would be the perfect sugar alternative, it wasn’t. Since our bodies can’t fully digest it, it can create some very unpleasant reactions. If present in large quantities, Lycasin can even start to ferment in our stomachs! Reviews on Amazon were quick to describe in detail what exactly “fermenting in our stomachs” entailed, and many users vividly shared their experience. Some colorful reviews called the sugar-free gummies “Death in a bag,” an intestinal “power wash, and a “gummy bear assault.” For what it’s worth, Haribo included a warning on the package, but after the stories went viral, they decided to put a stop to their production. Probably a good call on their part.
7. Candy Cigarettes
Again, this candy itself doesn’t need that much explanation as to why it could potentially kill you. As the name suggests, Candy Cigarettes were candy made to resemble packs of cigarettes and were made of either chalky sugar, bubblegum, or chocolate. They were wrapped in paper and packaged and branded as real cigarettes. Some even had powdered sugar at the tip so that you could blow through the candy stick and make it look like it was smoke. You can probably already see the problem with these. They first began being sold in the late 1900s, and cigarette manufacturers even helped with the production of the candy. The branding was used on the candy packets, the perfect way for kids to mirror exactly what the grown-ups were doing. Obviously, today, candy cigarettes are seen as a way to desensitize children to the idea of smoking, but it took a while for us to reach that conclusion. Medical organizations around the world began to become more aware of the dangers of smoking, so today, these candies are banned practically everywhere, except in the U.S. and Canada. Some studies have shown that the percentage of smokers who had candy cigarettes as a child was higher than those who didn’t smoke. So, the link between smoking and candy has been made and scientifically proven, so what exactly are we waiting for to ban them completely? It might seem like a “fun” and innocent candy, but in the long run, it’s probably killed more people than any other candy out there.
6. Milky Way
Ah, Milky Way! A tasty chocolate bar so good it could send you to another dimension. They say that “Life is better in the Milky Way,” but is it healthier? Probably not. It’s probably worse, to be completely honest. While it’s not all Milky Way bars that are problematic, there is one, in particular, that could cause a lot of damage, and it’s the one we tend to underestimate the most. The Milky Way Fun-size bars are supposed to help keep calories and sugar intake in check and help with portion control as well, however, that’s not exactly the case. Turns out, a serving of these small chocolate bars still contains around 20 grams of sugar, which for a tiny, 2-bite candy, is a whole lot. Especially knowing the full-size variety only contains 10 more grams. Why even bother to go for the fun-size if it doesn’t even change anything, anyway? They also contain hydrogenated palm kernel oil, which is insanely bad for our hearts, the environment, and even for orangutan survival. Not only that, but the caramel and nougat center is also infamous for annoyingly sticking to your teeth, which can cause cavities. This little candy bar also has over 200 calories and nine grams of fat, seven of which are saturated. So, yea, maybe try to steer clear of those Milky Ways if you care about your health and your teeth!
5. Tamarind Lollipops
Who doesn’t love a nice, spicy Mexican candy? Ole, you say? Well what if it were a Mexican candy that happened to be full of lead? Tamarind Lollipops, as amazing as they might be, have been banned from the U.S. market for the same reason the Toxic Chew Bars were, lead. We all know how ingesting a lot of lead can damage your brain and the central nervous system, which can cause severe learning disorders, and in some cases, even death. Only this time, an incident happened that made authorities act fast and swift. The lead-poisoning threat came from an imported tamarind candy lollipop labeled as the Dulmex brand “Bolirindo.” The California Department of Health Services began investigating the soft, dark brown tamarind-fruit candy lollipop after a 2-year-old Orange County child was found to have very high levels of lead in a routine blood test. It was discovered that the child had eaten the lollipops prior to his visit. Two other cases of lead poisoning have been associated with this candy, so it was eventually banned. The candy wrappers, which some children often lick or chew, contained almost 22,000 parts per million of lead! The sticks contain about 400 ppm of lead, and the candy itself about 2000 ppm. Proof that you can never be safe from toxic candy, even if you don’t even eat it.
4. Smarties
This particular brand of powdered candy might still be available; it just depends on where you go to school. For instance, if you go to Scarborough Middle School in Maine, then chances are, you will not come across Smarties. Smarties look pretty innocent enough; they’re just little candies. Sure, they look – and kind of taste – like medicine, but that’s not really the problem here. The problem comes from kids snorting the candy. Yes, you heard that right, snorting. Kids would go to the back of their classrooms, crush up a couple of Smarties, and sniff them up. Not only is this behavior extremely alarming, kids trying to recreate the act of, well, taking another type of substance that some adults take, but it also comes with its own health risks – like with any other powder going up your nose, really. These risks include asthma attacks, long-term breathing problems, and even nasal maggots. Okay, the last one is pretty rare, but it can happen! But Smarties isn’t the only candy kids like to sniff up their noses. The principal of Northern Hills Middle School in Michigan, announced in 2011 that any sugar candies such as “Smarties” and “Pixy Stix” would now be prohibited, as children liked to “smoke” them. Crushed up and then re-rolled into a cigarette, they were getting inventive. It was better to just ban these candies altogether.
3. Sour Patch Kids
Usually, when food is colorful, it’s highly nutritious. It’s like a rule of nature, basically. However, this doesn’t apply to fake, artificially colored foods like Sour Patch Kids. As much as these sour candies are beloved by many, it doesn’t make them any less harmful for you. It shouldn’t come as a surprise, either, considering the first three ingredients on the list are sugar, invert sugar (a mixture of glucose and fructose), and corn syrup. One two-ounce box of Sour Patch Kids contains a stunning 36 grams of sugar! It basically makes it one of the least healthy of Halloween candies ever. And, it’s not like the rest of the ingredients are better. Preservatives like citric acid and artificial coloring aren’t exactly the picture of health, either. Needless to say, they contain no nutritional benefits whatsoever. High fructose corn syrup is added to many refined products as it is cheap to manufacture but it’s been linked to diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, and many other diseases. Even though the FDA hasn’t banned the candy yet, it doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t. But, at the end of the day, even though they’re so tasty, moderation is key when eating candy with such insanely high sugar levels.
2. Hershey’s Take 5
In case you hadn’t consumed enough sugar to get you through until next Halloween, worry not, Hershey’s Take 5 is the perfect thing to tide you over. Take 5 is probably one of the most unhealthy chocolate bars on the market, mostly because of its outrageous ingredients. Among the lengthy ingredient list of this bar, you can find, partially hydrogenated oil, most commonly known as trans fat. Trans fats can upset the balance between the good and the bad cholesterol and has been linked to diseases like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. Hershey’s Take 5 also packs one heck of a sugar punch since sugar is listed as the first overall ingredient. You should be wary of the regular-size bars in particular, which contain a quarter of your daily-recommended saturated fats. However, because of consumer backlash, the company’s working toward removing every GMO product from their chocolates and getting rid of artificial flavors. So, while the recovery is on the way, in the meantime, if you want to give your arteries a break, don’t Take 5!
1. Nestle Magic Ball
If you’re a 90’s kid, then you definitely know about the Nestle Magic Ball. These big, hollow milk chocolate balls were extremely popular and could likely be found on just about any kid’s wish list. Kind of like Kinder Surprise, the Magic Balls came with a little surprise toy inside. Usually, a small, plastic figurine, such as a Disney or Pokémon character. It was the ultimate snack! What kid doesn’t like getting a toy to go along with their chocolate? However, the magic product was unceremoniously taken off the shelves in the late 1990s, much to every kid’s disappointment. But why? Well, turns out, in the U.S., it’s illegal to sell any candy with a toy or a “non-nutritive object embedded” inside of it. Parents were also concerned that the toys inside the chocolate shell presented a choking hazard and thought that kids would have trouble telling the difference between the chocolate and the toy. Nestlé insisted that the toy was safe but ended up withdrawing the product anyway. In 2000, Nestlé re-released the candy with a new name and a new concept. They were now called Wonder Balls and instead of toys, they were filled with candy instead – but that idea didn’t stick around for very long either.
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