It’s hard to miss the large displays of brightly wrapped candies, chocolates, and chips at this time of year. The temptation to indulge in sweets can be overwhelming but manageable by keeping the following tips in mind.
1. Purchase non-candy treats. Rest assured, children will have collected plenty of treats, so they won’t be missing out. Many children are thrilled by the act of collecting different
items, and there are many
options: play dough, glow sticks, sugar-free gum,
low-fat hot chocolate packets, popcorn, stickers, and balloons. A compromise is to create a bowl of both non-candy and candy
treats to provide trick-or-treaters with a choice. This is also a great way for children who have food allergies to
partake in the fun.
2. Prepare healthy party food. Presentation matters! Healthy foods can be easily dressed up in a spooky way. Try “mini pumpkins” by
peeling small oranges and
inserting celery sticks in the middle as a stem. “Gross
eyeballs” can be made using hard-boiled eggs, replacing the yolk with guacamole, and topping it with an olive and drizzling it with ketchup. Many seasonal favourites can be prepared with less sugar, salt, and fat. Pumpkin puree is a good substitute for fat in recipes. Consider baking pumpkin-carrot muffins, zucchini bread, or stuffed apples.
3. Make wiser choices. If the above suggestions don’t interest you, remember that not all treats are created equal. Some treats contain more calories, fat, and sugar than others.
A 7.5-gram Aero bar has 40 calories, 2 grams of fat, and 4 grams of sugar while a single Reese Peanut Butter Cup has 105 calories, 6.5 grams of fat, and 10.5 grams of sugar.
4. Keep it physical. If you’re hosting a Halloween bash, incorporate active and physical games to get your guests on their feet. Try “musical pumpkins” using fun Halloween songs, or a skeleton scavenger hunt, having the kids hunt for parts to complete a skeleton set. Later, get your trick-or-treaters to walk rather than hop into a car every few feet.
5. Create a learning opportunity. The ultimate goal is to get children to make healthy choices independently. One strategy is to allow them to
manage their own candy stash. On Halloween night, let them organize their stash and have a few pieces. After that, store it and limit consumption to after-meal times only. Interfere only if you feel it necessary.
Remember to maintain the spirit of Halloween and don’t get too carried away with
monitoring sugar intake! Halloween is a great reminder that it’s okay to have treats once in a while and that they have their place in a healthy diet.
