Growing up, Easter was always a time of excitement. Not only did we get a new hat or a new outfit (to go to church), but it was the only time of year we got candy. We lived in the desert, so trick-or-treating on Halloween was not on the program. Finding the eggs was a lot of fun, although I don’t remember being that fond of hard-boiled eggs, even if they were well colored.

These days it doesn’t seem like most kids limit their sweets to just Easter, but there are a few ways to minimize excess Easter sugar. One is to buy smaller Easter baskets. Another is to fill those baskets with little toys, movie tickets to your next favorite movie, miniature books, bookmarks, or gadgets that take the place of all that candy.

You might consider persuading your children that you want to have a historical Easter celebration. Chocolate eggs actually date back to the early 19th century, when monks used to distribute sweet yeast buns to children. You can buy dark chocolate bunnies instead of milk chocolate to cut down on the sugar a bit. A milk chocolate bunny weighing about 1.2 ounces has 170 calories, 10 grams of fat and 19 grams of sugar.

An old tradition that you can combine with the new one is to buy yogurt-covered pretzels in the same fruit flavors as the jelly beans, including strawberry and blueberry. (Studies show that cherry, strawberry, and grape are the best flavors for gummy bears.) Yogurt pretzels are colorful and not made from solid sugar. In fact, 7 pretzels are about 130 calories, but they have about 11 grams of sugar and about 6 grams of fat. In the old days, twisted pretzels were said to resemble someone’s folded arms in prayer. Not a bad way to remind children of the religious significance of the holiday.

Originating in the Civil War era, jelly beans are a must, of course. I admitted that I liked the licorice ones better. But having done some research on licorice, I would limit a child’s intake of that flavor. If you’ve filled the basket with other gifts, you don’t need to go too crazy with these sugar-filled, but “required” items. Because they are so small, the damage is much less. Luckily, the gummies are fat-free. You have to eat 41 jelly beans to equal 170 calories with 31 grams of sugar.

Even as a kid, I didn’t find Peeps appetizing. I was never a fan of the flavor or consistency of marshmallows and preferred solid chocolate bunnies. Look for the smallest size possible and buy the minimum. The same can be said for chocolate eggs with marshmallow inside. Each Peep has 29 grams of sugar and 130 calories. Each egg weighs about an ounce and has 110 calories with 14 grams of sugar.

Robin’s eggs are balls of malted milk with a sugar coating. Eight robin eggs have a little more sugar than a single custard egg, which can cause a lot of mess. An Egg Crème has 25 grams of sugar, 6 grams of fat, and 170 calories.

Hopefully, this information will help you make a more informed decision about what kind of candy to buy for your child’s Easter basket. Read the labels on what you buy and try to limit how much your child can eat at one time. More and more studies conclude that sugar is addictive and harmful. As a parent, it’s up to you to lead by example and help your kids moderate their sugar intake.