While the holiday season traditionally kicks off around Thanksgiving, a national renown nutritionist says you could argue the season for sweet treats is Halloween.

Dr. Jim LaValle is the author of 'Cracking the Metabolic Code' and the clinical director for the Pro Football Hall of Fame performance health program. He says parents of kids especially are prone to overexposure to sweet treats. He sees it all the time - people work really hard to lose weight and gain it back in November and December.

According to Dr. LaValle, we're expected to live around four years less and most of the population is overweight or obese. He says we need to understand how stress impacts our desires and cravings.

Another key to keeping those cravings away is to stay hydrated. Dr. LaValle explains the hunger signals and the hydration signals come from the same part of the brain. He says a lot of times if you are all of a sudden hungry, it may be because you are dehydrated. 

Dr. LaValle encourages parents to not give their kids unfettered access to that Halloween candy and use it as a reward system or exchange it for something else.