Easter, after Halloween, is the biggest holiday of the year for candy. Chocolate bunnies, jelly beans and malt balls are everywhere in Easter-themed events stretching out over a week or more with school parties, neighborhood egg hunts and family gatherings.

And just like the Easter Bunny some beliefs about candy are myths. Others, however, are all too true.

“I have four children of my own and they are all thinking about Easter and getting candy at school,” said Alene D’Alesio, a dentist and program director of pediatric dentistry at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC.

“And they are all bringing home taffy and Tootsie rolls which is really difficult for me as a dentist,” she said.

D’Alesio said today’s heightened awareness of nut allergies has eliminated many of the candies that can be handed out at school leaving taffy and other sticky candies as the go-to treats.

“That’s usually the candy I see my kids bring home, and it immediately goes in the trash,” she said.

“I tell them, ‘Anything sticky is icky.’ With lollipops, taffy and other hard candy, you can break off a tooth if you bite down on it the wrong way,” said D’Alesio

“The hard candies dissolve slowly in the mouth giving bacteria more time to increase,” she said, which is why she recommends that if children can’t brush after eating candy, they should at least rinse their mouths with water.

Candy has the same deleterious effect on baby teeth as it does on permanent teeth, she said.

“Bacteria can cause cavities. Enamel on baby teeth is different from that of an adult and bacteria can break through enamel on baby teeth quicker than adult teeth,” D’Alesoio said. “That’s why we recommend children come see us at the age of one.”

But if increased sugar intake can lead to cavities, it probably doesn’t lead to the dreaded youngsters’ “sugar rush.”

Ann Condon-Meyers, a dietitian at Children’s Hospital, said, “The sugar rush, they’ve never been able to repeat the initial studies that claim there is such a thing.” “But with large amounts of candy, and large groups of people around the holidays, children have other reasons to get wired up,” she said.

“One last thought that I had is we are very food-centric on holidays. It’s important, but it shouldn’t be the only thing,” said Condon-Meyers. “We should discuss why we are celebrating.

“Or we should start new traditions like an Easter walk or a special movie or if you’re religious reading on why we celebrate,” said Condon-Meyers.

Good luck on selling children on an Easter walk while a basketful of goodies awaits, but some candy choices are better than others, said D’Alesio.

“They should choose chocolate over sticky candies,” said D’Alesio. “And they should choose dark chocolate for the antioxidants over milk chocolate.” A chocolate bunny or two, provided they are hollow, are a reasonably appropriate alternative to an Easter basket filled with jellybeans licorice and malt balls, she noted

Nancy Hunt, the clinical nutrition manager at Butler Memorial Hospital, said, “With chocolate, the dark chocolate at least, you will at least get flavonol, which acts as an antioxidant. But almost all candies are nearly 100 percent sugar.”

D’Alesio recommends filling the rest of the Easter basket with plastic eggs filled with balls, balloons, money, erasers and other small gifts. “A couple of pieces of chocolate is more than enough,” she said.

She figures jelly beans and marshmallow peeps are the worst candies. Peeps alone have 30 grams of sugar.

Besides, she noted, American children are getting four times the daily recommended amount of sugar, according to the American Heart Association.

A lot of that excess sugar comes from juice boxes and giving children fruit juices under the mistaken impression the juices are healthy. They are often loaded with sugar.

She recommends switching children to plain old water.

D’Alesio said, “I don’t want to deprive anyone of candy, but just by choosing the correct substitutes or kinds of candy you can prevent problems.”