Keeping Halloween Healthy

Just about every kid loves that once a year day when candy is free all day long and better yet, they get to dress up in their favorite costume while doing it! Well I'm sure all dentists love the day too, but Halloween doesn't necessarily mean eating sugar all day long and then being wired the rest of the night. Here are some tips for having a healthier Halloween, whether you are giving out treats, having an in-house party, or having a party at school.

So what are some non-candy ideas for having a party at school or at home? The Party Store! Kids love trinkets, especially the younger grade level kids. Bat rings, pumpkin rings, SPIDER rings! You can grab a handful of these and not break the bank. Some stores, try the dollar stores, even have little seasonal toothbrushes with animals on the handles! Parents will love you for those! You can also find mini stuffed animals and plastic mugs to put them in. Apples! Kids love apples! Buy a roll of orange or black mesh and tie up apples individually for each child with opposite color ribbon. These can be done a couple days in advance, too, as they will keep fresh in the refrigerator. Toys, just walk into a dollar store or party store and things will fall right into your basket! Halloween pencils and erasers are great for school parties. Mini corn muffins are a great food item for school, too, just place a little plastic spider on top of each one and you're all set! Raisins! Buy those packages that have the individual serving boxes inside. Raisins are naturally sweet and healthy, how great is that? Popcorn! Buy plain popcorn for the classroom, kids love it and its healthy, too! Carrot sticks are orange! Olives are black! Use your imaginations!

But these don't have to be just for school. You can give out pencils, erasers, rings, etc to all your trick-or-treaters, too! The Oriental Trading Co. catalog has bulk buying for all your needs, whether a party at school or home, or just for the door dinging ghouls! And lets not forget about all the change buried in the bottom of your handbag, or maybe you have a change jar. Throw a couple coins to each trick-or-treater! Pennies, nickels, dimes, it doesn't matter, especially if you live in an area where you don't get a lot of customers at your door, you won't go broke doing it! Stickers! Kids love stickers!

There are candies though which you can give out at Halloween that are fat-free! Cotton candy! Licorice! Take a walk down the candy aisle at your neighborhood food store and you'll be amazed at which candies are actually fat-free. You can hand out sticks of sugar free gum! Halloween, aside from all the scary monsters and pretty princesses, is a one day a year treat for kids where they can run from house to house, scream out TRICK OR TREAT! and get rewarded! So before you trash all the candy, take a good look at all their contents. You may be tossing out something that actually isn't bad for your child! But will a piece of chocolate or hard candy really be a big deal?? Chocolate is actually healthy, especially Hershey's dark miniatures. Even for the diabetic child, there's a piece of candy out there for him or her too!

But what to do with all the extra candy you may not want to linger around the house for your children, or yourself?? Wrap up sandwich size baggies full of the candy you don't want and bring it down to your local Food Bank! Maybe your local church can give them out too! Have your kids help you, they will see that helping others makes you feel good inside, too! Some teachers hand out "great job" awards to their students, Find out first if candy is ok to bring in for the teacher to give out at their own discretion. Have a jar full of candy for friends you invite over. Keep it hidden from your family and just bring it out at times you entertain. It takes great discipline to offer guests candy while you restrain yourself from indulging in it yourself! Have teenagers? Kids love to munch! Offer a dish of candy to their friends and watch it disappear! Another idea, go out with your children to trick-or-treat early in the day, as the day it falls on permits, go through their candy collection, keep what you want, and give out the rest to the trick-or-treaters that come to your door later in the day or evening! Recycle your candy! This is a great idea if you know you always get a crowd after dinner hours.

No matter how strict you may be on what your kids can and can't eat, enjoy Halloween! It's a day made for them! Enjoy picking out a costume with them, help them with face make-up. Have umbrellas ready in case it rains! And if it does, go out anyway! Its a one day event, rain or shine, so you only get one chance to see their faces shine! Make the best of it and have fun! You were a kid once, too.....remember?

M.Soozan