Eating large amounts of Snickers candy bars or Reeses Peanut Butter Cups this Halloween is OK, says one Olin Health Center student organization.

Respecting and Understanding Body Image, or RUBI, a group that works to promote positive body image and increase eating disorder awareness, distributed fliers this week urging students not to worry about how much candy they eat this weekend.

The flier stated "It's the fun that counts, not the calories - enjoy food and celebrate yourself."

"You don't need to worry about calories and you don't need to worry about fat," said Erin Ruth, RUBI president and nutritional sciences senior. "You can enjoy any food with moderation.

"There really is no food that is good or bad."

In monthly meetings, RUBI members discuss various health- and nutrition-related topics, including fad diets, nutritional supplements and eating disorders. Last February, they participated in Eating Disorder Awareness Week by handing out Twix candy bars to passers-by throughout campus.

And Ruth said to forget some of what you've been told - candy isn't necessarily a vegetable's evil counterpart.

"There tends to be a really strong message that candy is bad," Ruth said. "We're trying to show you that you can still eat candy in a healthy diet."

MSU nutritional sciences coordinator and professor Dale Romsos said he agreed with the flier.

"For one weekend of eating candy, I don't believe there are any major health risks," said Romsos, whose research includes work with lipid and carbohydrate metabolism.

Although a weekend of splurging shouldn't do too much harm, Romsos said eating large amounts of candy regularly is not the best idea.

"It would cause an increase in dental cavities," Romsos said. "It's not a wise idea to do this on a regular basis."

But even Romsos said he'll partake in the festivities.

"I probably will be eating a little extra candy myself," Romsos said. "Whatever we don't hand out to trick-or-treaters."

Finance senior Jason Switzer said although the RUBI flier might seem to send a conflicting message, the idea is noble.

"Don't worry about being anorexic," Switzer said. "Just chow down."

Lynn Polmanteer said she agrees.

"Anything in moderation is OK," the dietetics senior said. "It's not going to kill you to eat a lot of candy for one day."

Polmanteer said the message has more weight, considering where it is from.

"It's important to hear it from an Olin group," she said. "They're saying, 'We're from Olin and it is OK to do this.'"

International relations and criminal justice senior Farila Kabir said she eats candy regularly and definitely won't worry about it this weekend.

"It's about the fun, not the calories," Kabir said. "It's just for the day.

"Anyway, a person can eat only so much candy."