Hoping to quell complaints about pastry paternalism, county officials have offered a limited comeback for donated doughnuts that were recently barred from senior citizens' centers because of health worries. But some seniors immediately soured on the plan. Putnam County officials have been taking heat for proposing to prohibit the free doughnuts from the county's five senior centers. The "day-old" sweets come from local shops. Nutritionists have questioned whether the doughnuts are suitable snacks for the over-65 demographic, which is susceptible to high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes. But patrons have said they're mature enough to decide what to eat, and some 250 people have signed a petition blasting the proposed doughnut ban.

County officials on Tuesday proposed a compromise: Small amounts of doughnuts, cakes and other baked goods could be served, but not stored, at the centers.

Officials said the measure had to do with contamination, not calories.

"We were seeing huge amounts of days-old items coming in," said county Office for the Aging coordinator Doreen Crane. "Some of it was visibly moldy."

But the new plan didn't please several of the two dozen seniors at a county legislative committee meeting on the issue Tuesday.

"Ludicrous," said Joe Hajkowski, 75, who launched the petition drive. He said he eschewed the sweets himself, but "I don't like the way they are treating the seniors."

A total of about 1,000 seniors head to the county's five nutrition centers each day for lunch.

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Information from: The Journal News, http://www.thejournalnews.com