A Healthier Halloween!

It’s been a long time since my kids were trick-or-treaters, but I know that lots of young moms are trying to instill healthy habits in their children.  It takes a little more creative thinking during Halloween!  The scary part of Halloween isn’t the ghouls, ghosts and goblins haunting your neighborhood—it’s the bag of sugary sweets that makes its way into your home after a night of trick-or-treating!  And then what do you do?  I have to admit that I asked my kids to share their chocolate from those full bags of goodies too.    

While it might be hard to stem the flow of non-healthy treats, you can do your part by handing out a healthier alternative at your home on Halloween.  Lots of the big box grocers carry mini-packs of treats.  There are several options that go beyond milk chocolate and artificially colored junk.  How about :

·       Pumpkin seeds

·       Sunflower seeds

·       Trail mix

·       Carrot sticks

·       Mini rice cakes

·       Granola bars

·       100% fruit juice boxes

·       Raisins

·       Popcorn

·       Dried apples / dried fruit

While it may be tempting to whip up something healthy and delicious for the trick-or-treaters who come to your door, a lot of parents might toss them because they aren’t sure the items are safe for their child.

But you really don’t need food items at all for Halloween treats.  Here are some other fun things you can do!  You can look for some small Halloween-themed gifts to give out instead of candy.  Putting out a bowl of these items will delight little ones!

·       Stickers

·       Superballs

·       Yo-yos

·       Novelty pencils

·       Glitter pens

·       Small notebooks

·       Keychains

Finally, if you want to save yourself a trip to the store altogether, you could always take the money you would have spent on candy or stickers, cash it in for lots of coins and put it in a big jar.  Let kids swipe a handful for a unique, sugar-free, calorie-free treat.

Have a really fun Halloween!  What costume are you wearing?

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