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Top Ten Healthy Halloween Tips

October 28, 2013   15 Comments

Halloween is almost here and Snack Girl continues on her mission to convince herself that a healthy Halloween is possible.

10 Healthy Halloween Ideas

Mostly, I try to limit the damage. For example, last year I found my daughter’s candy bag in her bed! Was she munching all night? Man, that kid is crafty.

I have tried all sorts of things to convince my children that eating their entire bag of candy in one sitting is a bad idea (including letting them eat a ton of candy in the hopes that they would get a stomach ache).

Ahh well.

I do try to take off my “Snack Girl” cape and just let them enjoy it. I focus on teaching them to savor the treats instead of swallowing them all whole.

Here are 10 tips that I have compiled over the last few years to lead you into having both a fun AND healthy Halloween:

  1. Try A Healthy Halloween Snack bananaghostb or Get Them To Smile With This Adorable Snack Apple Smile- make SCARY snacks with fruits and vegetables for some serious fun!
  2. Don't Toss These Out! pumpkinseedsb - try roasting your pumpkin seeds for a delicious healthy snack.
  3. Buy bags of candy that YOU don't like - this way the candy isn't tempting. (Personally, I can't stand Smarties).
  4. Get your house "toilet papered" with this suggestion: Healthy Halloween Candy. Also, try handing out oranges, apples, juice boxes, and boxes of raisins.
  5. Don't give out candy at all! Hand out stickers, glow sticks, creepy spider rings, Play-Doh, or any type of small toy.
  6. Try these suggestions for a "candy-lite" solution to the TOO much candy problem: Healthy Halloween Candy: Take Two.
  7. If your children are young, tell them about the CANDY FAIRY. My six year old bought the idea that she could put her candy out and a fairy would replace it with a toy. She is truly excited about giving away her candy - magic, no?
  8. If your children are old enough to understand, try making a care package of candy for a soldier in Afghanistan. There are a bunch of different organizations that can help you find a way to cheer up a soldier and they always seem to want snacks. One example is Any Soldier.
  9. Don't give out the "stick to your teeth" candy! The Skittles, Starburst, and Taffy of the world is extremely difficult to clean off teeth. The sugar will adhere to the tooth enamel and cause cavities easily. Choose one of the non-sticky options like chocolate, lollipops, or Smarties.
  10. Don't set yourself on fire! Actually, that's a tip for EVERY day (I couldn't think of 10 Healthy Halloween Tips :).

Please share this list with your friends or family that have children.

Got some more ideas I should have added? Please comment.

Other posts you might like:

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Last year, Snack Girl jumped into the healthy "candy" arena with a post that angered my readers....

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Healthy Halloween Candy: What To Do?

This year, Snack Girl is in serious trouble. Her annual trip to Target to find a healthy choice ended in defeat.

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15 Comments:

LOVE tip 7!!! :)

Thanks so much for all the posts. This year I decided no candy/chips/chocolate(because of reading your posts). We went with ritz snack packs and mini bite sized granola bars. Maybe not top healthiest choice, but for us it's a start. Next year will probably be pretzels. Thanks so much for spreading the "healthy food" word!

Get on Pinterest and check out the Switch Witch - along the lines of a candy fairy. Super cute!

I love the candy fairy idea. I'm going to try that this year, thanks Lisa I will go look up the "switch witch"...love pinterest!

We have teenagers now, but when they were younger we let them eat ten pieces of candy when they got home from trick or treating. The remainder was put away in containers and they were allowed one piece per week on "candy night" which was usually a Friday night. They were so excited each week in anticipation of candy night. Usually they never made it through the candy without getting bored of it and the rest was brought into work for my coworkers to enjoy.

Tried # 3, didn't work :-(.

Where is my will power?!

My daughter's school collects "Treats for Troops" that go to our service men and women overseas. We collect it up between Halloween and Veteran's Day.

I love the idea of the Candy Fairy or Switch Witch. My 4 year old doesn't eat a large variety of candy so it shouldn't be too difficult to get her to want to switch out candy for a nice new toy.

Well...I am older than most of the moms posting comments as my kids are all grown. Moderation is the key, moms!! Hours of trick or treating is not necessary, nor is a pillowcase full of junk. Gather it all up and parcel it out from day to day. We used to have something as an afterschool snack and maybe one more treat in the evening...never an overload. The candy for troops is an awesome idea because within a few weeks past Halloween in our day we often tossed out the leftover candy because everyone had had enough. Candy is not bad. Excess is.

We are dressing up in bee suits and handing out honey sticks!

Yep. Candy fairy. Works like a charm. ;)

I usually buy what I like .. it's only one day, then the rest of it comes to work ..it'll be gone by noon :-)

Monica

I enjoy reading your blog regularly and have tried quite a few of your recipes and like them. I support healthy eating but what is the point of trick-or-treating if the candy fairy is just going to take it away. What a waste for everyone involved. If you pass out plastic toys they will just end up in the trash at some point - again a big waste. Trick-or-treat a little, eat it and be done :)

I love these wonderful tips, Lisa!

I know if I have chocolate in the house, I will eat it, so I used to buy my Halloween candy the day before. This week I purchased some healthy (or healthier) goodies at the dollar store: small bags of Snyder's pretzels, packets of peanuts, boxes of raisins. As a dietitian, I prefer to give these treats.

As a child I remember receiving apples from neighbors, and I was not pleased. For one, I did not consider it a treat because apples were readily available at home. Also they would weigh down my bag!

I love the idea of sending treats to the troops. I plan to try some of the scary snacks with fruits and vegetables. Thanks for sharing!

This comment is a bit late, but I know we all have bags of Halloween candy in the house. Our pediatric dentist recommends having them eat all of the candy in one sitting or two! He'd rather bombard the teeth with sugar in 2 short bursts instead of a dose of sugar every day. OK, my job here is done. Now where is that Almond Joy my kid saved for me?

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