However, if you\u2019re a child in Sweden, you\u2019ll have to wait for Saturday to enjoy a bag full of the local godisv\u00e4gg. That\u2019s because, according to the Swedish tradition known as L\u00f6rdagsgodis (Saturday candy), they only eat sweets once a week. It\u2019s a sweet tradition, but it has a rather dark past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 1946, as part of the Vipeholm dental study<\/a>, the Swedish government forced mental patients in its hospitals to eat caramel and other sweets to observe their effects on teeth. After high sugar consumption was linked to tooth decay in the 1950\u2019s, the Swedish government recommended that people eat sweets only once a week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the time, trust in government was high, and the growing social safety net required the population to work together to maintain high public health standards. Plus, when the public takes good care of their teeth, it\u2019s a lot easier for the government to pay for healthcare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The tradition also makes it easier for parents to say \u201cno\u201d to sweets and gives kids something to look forward to on the weekend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMostly, it\u2019s a tool for managing candy, so that there\u2019s no asking about candy during the week, and if they do, \u2018It\u2019s not Saturday.\u2019 So, it\u2019s a really a good way to control the sugar,\u201d Therese Larri, a Swedish parent, told the BBC<\/a>. \u201cBut then, it\u2019s an event. They get to choose where we go, which store we go to, and then they take their time. It feels like a big part of the fun is to choose and plain, \u2018What am I Gonna get?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The L\u00f6rdagsgodis tradition is also better for people\u2019s teeth because, according to research, it\u2019s better to eat a pound of candy in one sitting and then brush your teeth than to spread the candy over a week and brush every night. The Vipeholm dental study found that sticky sweets eaten between meals cause far more cavities than larger amounts of candy eaten in one sitting. That\u2019s probably a big reason why Swedish people have some of the best teeth in Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"sweden,](\"https:\/\/www.upworthy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/S-C-1.jpg?w=1024\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nWhy do the Swedes only eat sweets on Saturday?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"sweden,](\"https:\/\/www.upworthy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/SC-2.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nL\u00f6rdagsgodis is great for Sweden\u2019s dental health <\/h2>\n\n\n\n