Healthy Halloween 2015: Alternatives To Celebrating A Sugar-Free Halloween

It's the season for scary monsters and sugar overload. However, some parents may want to celebrate Halloween without fearing their kids may develop dental problems, diabetes or allergies, so they ban sweets and candies altogether. But this doesn't mean that children should not be able to enjoy the festivities. There are healthier ways to celebrate Halloween and here are some tips to enjoying a sugar-free night:

1. Continue to participate in the tradition of trick-or-treating and have kids wear their costumes and collect their goodies from the neighbors. Upon reaching home, suggest to keep the candies and offer a different kind of surprise, such as a new toy or book. You may also arrange to bring the kids to their favorite theme park after Halloween if they agree to give up their candy baskets in exchange.

2. Donate the candies the kids collected at different candy buyback programs that ship these off to military personnel on tour of duty. Check out Halloween Candy Buyback, Operation Shoebox and Operation Gratitude for details on how to donate the candies. Similar programs also be available at your local community, so ask around about it.

3. Before the kids head out for trick-or-treat, prepare a healthy and hearty snack first so that they won't be tempted to eat the candies as they move from house to house. According to Strong4Life, a bucket of Halloween candies collectively contain 11,000 calories or roughly 21 meals for a child, so better fill their stomachs up with good snacks, instead of the ones in their Halloween bags.

4. Participate in the Teal Pumpkin Project and if possible, encourage your neighbors to do the same. This is established by the Food Allergy Research Education (FARE) to ensure the safety and enjoyment of children with allergies from gluten, wheat, chocolate and peanuts, which are common ingredients of Halloween candies. Put up teal signs, banners and displays at your house for Halloween to signal that your household will be distributing healthy treats instead of candies.  

5. Of course, it would make sense to do all of these by talking to your children about it first. Explain to them why you need to change up Halloween celebration this year, or the consequences of eating too much sweets. Better yet, involve them in the planning, preparation and decisions. The older kids would most likely love the idea if they are asked and involved, while the younger kids may be more eager to try out the changes.