Because Halloween is known as the time of year when kids stuff treat bags full of their favorite sugary treats, it's not always easy to find the right balance between fun and healthy.
When your child comes home with an abundance of candy, it's important to watch out for potential hazards and overeating. To make Halloween healthier and safer this year, we have a few suggestions that can help!
Ways to stay safe
- Before your child leaves, be sure to give them a meal or snack. This will reduce the likelihood of them eating a bunch of candy throughout the night.
- Let your child know that it's important to be careful and that you will inspect their candy for hazards when they get home.
- When inspecting your child's candy, you should look for any signs of package tampering such as discoloration, tiny pinholes, or tears.
- Be sure to discard any homemade treats, candy, and baked goods that your child receives.
- If you have a toddler, you should remove candies that they can choke on such as gum, nuts, or hard candies.
- If your child has food allergies, be sure to inspect the ingredient labels on the candy and toss out the items they are allergic to.
Tricks for your child's treats
- Moderate their intake and set a portion size for when they are going door-to-door and when they are home.
- While trick-or-treating, you can encourage them to only take one piece at each house and limit the size of their bag.
- When they're home, be sure to make sure they know how much candy they can have and when they can have it.
- Implement a "buy back" program. Let them choose a selection of their favorite treats and then "buy" the rest in exchange for a different treat, like a book or a toy. This way they can enjoy their candy without going overboard.
- Pair the candy with something healthy. When your child asks for some candy, you can supplement it with a banana, an apple, or some nuts.
Pass out healthy options!
When selecting treats, be sure to look for kinds that are lower in fat, sugar, calories, and trans fat and consider alternatives to candy.
Alternatives to candy include:
- Fruit rolls
- Microwave popcorn
- Pretzels
- Juice boxes
- Animal crackers
- Breakfast cereal
- Mini boxes of raisins
- Peanuts
- Trail mix
- Ginger snaps
- Graham crackers
- Vanilla wafers