Diet & Fitness

How can my kids and family enjoy Halloween and keep it healthy?

Halloween is my favorite holiday: costumes, haunted houses, and of course, trick-or-treating! Unfortunately, this means lots of candy and treats everywhere I look -- from Halloween parties to your child’s school socials to the candy on your colleague’s desk! We are bound to give in at some point!

How can you avoid these temptations or at least limit them?

For starters, find things other than candy to give out. No one wants to be ‘that’ house on the block that gives out the uncool stuff, but there are plenty of healthy food options you can hand out to trick-or-treaters (pretzels, granola bars, pre-packaged trail mix, popcorn, sugarfree gum).

I personally like the non-food route and hand out spider rings, stickers, glow sticks, or even those awesome vampire teeth (I used to love those!). Believe me, the children will still go home with a sack full of candy no matter what you decide to give out, but at least you have saved yourself from unnecessary indulgences.

If you are concerned about the amount of candy your kids will bring home, follow some of these strategies:

1. The smaller the bag, bucket, or container your child takes trick-or-treating, the less candy it can hold.

2. Take your time going around the neighborhood. Once their trick-or-treating bag, bucket or container is full, it's time to go home – make that a rule.

3. At home, let your kids have fun by going through their candy, sorting and trading with siblings. Throw away whatever candy is left over.

4. Pack one piece of candy in their lunch until it’s gone. My mother used to do this and it worked like a charm…I never complained.

5. If you don’t want to discard it, bag it up and freeze it or put it away in the pantry. Out of sight, out of mind…..or bring some of it in to work (that is my trick!)

Halloween Parties and School Socials
These parties can be a bit worrisome when it comes to treats. So why not offer up some tasty, yet healthy, alternatives? You can share recipes with those hosting the party or offer to bring snacks and sweets yourself. This will give you some relief knowing there will be healthy options to choose from.

- Roasted pumpkin seeds (lightly salt before roasting.)
- Caramel-dipped fruit (use a “light” caramel dip.)
- Fresh fruit with a low-fat yogurt dip (a crowd pleaser that satisfies a sweet tooth with a punch of vitamins!)
- Sandwich cutouts (use Halloween cookie cutters to make mini turkey and cheese or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.)
- Cheese fondue with fruit and pretzels for dippers
- Pumpkin muffins
- Hot apple cider

Have a happy and healthy Halloween!

Have a diet question for Pam? Email askpam@ediets.com and check back to see if your question is picked! And if you missed a previous column, click here to see the archive.

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Labels: ask pam, candy, dieting, halloween, nutrition, pam

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