Mumsnet food mania - beyond toddler years

[cathf]

Not really a TAAT but a question triggered by one, I suppose.
My 10-year-old is going to a birthday party tomorrow. I have just been to the shop and bough a card and a bag of Haribo to go with the present.
Every party my child has had he has been given more or less the same by most guests - a present and a bag of sweets.
I have not thought about it before, but reading the current thread about nursery menus, it occurs to me that this could be a very controversial gift!
Thing is, as I said, we all do it.
I live in a fairly middle-class area, school is fairly mixed catchment church primary with 80 pupils.
Is it only on MN that anything sweet is regarded as poison? I have never met anyone as extreme as some of the posters in real life, and I have had three children.
And does this mania continue beyond the toddler years?
It's pretty easy to control your child's diet until they start school I would say, but does the control extend beyond nursery? Into teens? How do the children like being singled out as the Weird Ones?
Or do the uber-mums lose interest as the children stop being so compliant and cute?

There are posters here who are insanely controlling about food. They'll be along presently to talk about how thin they are.

I think it's fine alongside a present to give sweets. If the parents choose to let them have the sweets, they can. If not, they can choose not to give them. I monitor party bags my DC get from parties (only because I'm a bit funny about lollypops and choking) but I don't stop my DS having sweets. Funnily enough, he doesn't care much either way for sweets yet his friend practically goes Ferrell when he sees sweets as he isn't allowed any and has only ever had a small pack of haribo when he put them in his pockets and ate them in secret!