Pediatricians at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas say it's natural for children to like sweets. Different taste buds develop at different times, and the taste buds that sense sweetness provide a very positive feeling for small children. Children need some sugar in their diets for energy, but that doesn't mean they should indulge in candy all the time. Kids who develop a taste for sweets instead of more nutritious foods may develop weight problems if they don't burn up the extra calories through activity.
Sugar also can lead to tooth decay and gum problems.
Candy isn't the only source of sugar in kids' diets. You'll find added sugar in snacks, soft drinks, juice drinks and cereal. The new nutrition labels found on packaged foods make it easy to find the sugar content of foods, but the labels don't distinguish between sugar naturally found in foods and added sugar. As a result, wholesome foods like milk appear to be high in sugar, even though no sugar is added to milk. You don't have to eliminate sugar from children's diets, unless a child has a specific health condition that requires sugar restriction.