Peppermints, chocolates, fruit candies, and caramels all provide a delightful end to a meal or a mid-afternoon interlude to get you through your day. While these sweet treats can provide a pick me up and fulfill a craving, they can also add sugar, unwanted calories, and potential for cavities galore. Sticking to sugar free treats can keep the calories down and your smile healthy.

Sugar Free Chocolates

From ready to eat chocolate patties and nougats to homemade treats, sugar free chocolates are a lighter calorie alternative for chocoholics. Hershey's offers sugar free chocolate, dark chocolate, York Peppermint Patties, Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Minis, and chocolate chips. If this mainstream candy maker can't cure your chocolate hankering, check out the Russell Stover sugar free line for everything from solid chocolates to truffles.

If you are feeling creative, try making your own chocolate candy using sugar free chocolate chips or bars as the base and mixing in your own sugar free caramels, nuts, and add-ins galore. Check out how to make your own sugar free chocolate peanut butter cups here.

Sugar Free Caramels

The thought of having a sugar free caramel is nearly impossible as the taste inherently screams cooked sugar. However, lucky for all of the caramel lovers, there are plenty of great tasting alternates available. Nestle offers Sugar Free NIPS and even Werther's Original has their classic caramel hard candy in a sugar free formula!

For a more homemade feel, check out Judy's Candies sugar free caramels.

Finally, if your favorite memories of caramel are when it covers apples, you are in luck with this sugar free caramel apple recipe!

Sugar Free Peppermints

When you are suffering from post meal garlic induced halitosis (bad breath) or are looking for a refreshing zing on your tongue, peppermints can do the trick. Both Trident and Eclipse offer potent sugar free mints that will knockout bad flavors and breath. For the classic peppermint striped candy, check out the sugar free makeover from Office Snax available at Office Depot.

Sugar Free Fruit Candies

Crystal Light offers hard and chewy candies with yummy fruit flavors that you'd more likely expect from drinks. Jolly Ranchers are officially available in sugar free as well and are not too far off from the regular versions you probably grew up with. You'll likely enjoy sucking on them and your candy colored tongue will thank you!

While these all the aforementioned options may be sugar free, remember that candy, even sugar free candy, will still have calories and carbohydrates. Make sure you read labels and take into account the total nutrition of the product as they can still affect your blood sugar and calorie intake.