Lördagsgodis: Why Swedes save sweets for Saturday

Sweden is a dream for candy lovers. But why do many Swedes stick to a one-day-a-week rule for enjoying sweets?

Transcript

00:00Picture this, a candy paradise with hundreds of varieties, choosing the perfect mix just for you.

00:07But where exactly is this sanctuary of sweets?

00:10In Sweden, where candy has a real culture, there's just one catch.

00:14You can only eat godis, or sweets, on Saturdays.

00:18As a child it was great. You would choose your sweets on Saturday.

00:23There were no sweets during the week, but when you got some on Saturday it was a party.

00:29It's the best. I can just walk into a sweets store and take a deep breath, because it smells like candy.

00:38But why are sweets only allowed on Saturdays? Do people really still stick to this tradition?

00:44And what are the dark sides of the industry? How did a social media hype from the US trigger a candy shortage?

00:53Even supermarkets in Sweden stock a breathtaking array of bulk confectionery.

00:58Not to mention the speciality stores for candy junkies like Caramella in Stockholm.

01:05500 different types of candy can be found here, in all flavours, colours, shapes and sizes.

01:12A paradise on earth indeed, at least according to the Svalbring family.

01:17These are my favourite. They taste, well, sour. And then we have these. They're sour too, but also creamy. I like that.

01:31And then we have bubs. I like raspberries. That's how they're flavoured I think.

01:36These are my favourite. They look like fried eggs. Really big and yellow and white.

01:45The average Swede eats around 15 kilograms of sweets a year. And that's despite the fact that many of them only buy sweets on Saturdays.

01:55These are known as Lourdes Goodies, Saturday sweets.

02:04It's very busy here on Saturdays. That's when all the children come in with their parents.

02:10But often the store is full on Fridays too.

02:13Many people buy their sweets then, hoping that they'll last them the weekend.

02:18The idea of Lourdes Goodies was originally developed by Swedish authorities in the 1950s.

02:24The aim was to reduce the consumption of sweets in the country and improve dental health.

02:30At the time, a study had shown that sugar causes tooth decay.

02:35But the Vipaholm experiments, on which the study was based, were deeply unethical.

02:42In a psychiatric hospital in southern Sweden, where they had full control over patients' diets,

02:49people were given various types of sweets and sugar in many different forms.

02:54This was done over a period of several years.

02:57The aim was to find out whether the patients developed tooth decay.

03:02And that's exactly what happened.

03:07The idea behind Lourdes Goodies was to reduce the consumption of sweets.

03:12But to this day, the Swedes are candy fanatics.

03:15That's why many have developed their own rules.

03:18Our children are only allowed to pick out 13 sweets.

03:22That's what they get.

03:25But the candies are not only popular here in Sweden.

03:28When a social media hype about the Swedish goodies broke out in the US in 2024,

03:33there were suddenly supply issues.

03:37There's been this hype about Swedish candy for almost a year now.

03:42It's mainly boobs, which are made here in Sweden, that are in demand.

03:47And because it was all over social media, some varieties were no longer available at all.

03:53So do you have rules for your candy consumption? And how does your dentist feel about it?