Halloween is right around the corner! This fun holiday can be an opportunity for you to educate your kids about what sugar does to their bodies and why it isn’t so great for them. It may not always be an easy task, but we have lots of fun tips and tricks for more mindful trick-or-treating… as well as some delicious and healthy kid-friendly Halloween recipes everyone is sure to enjoy!
Tips for More Mindful Trick-or-Treating
- Feed your kids a good healthy dinner of protein, vegetables, and healthy fats before heading out the door to trick-or-treat. That way they aren’t starving and eating candy as they go!
- Limit the number of houses that your kids go to for trick-or-treating. Keep it to your close neighbors, friends, and family. When I was a kid, we only went to a handful of houses of people we knew really well to show off our costumes.
- Let them pick out 2 or 3 of their favorite pieces of candy that night and then put the rest away. From there you can decide if you will allow them a piece each day for a while or if you get rid of it completely.
- Take Halloween candy to a dentist’s office, many buy Halloween candy and then send it overseas to troops. There are also other places where you can donate Halloween candy.
- And my favorite, present the Switch Witch. You can buy a box set with the book HERE. I wish the Switch Witch would have existed when I was growing up! What a great concept.
What exactly is the Switch Witch?
The Switch Witch lives on the dark side of the moon. She LOVES candy. The Switch Witch loves candy so much that she’s eager to trade toys to girls and boys in exchange for their candy stash. The girls and boys can choose to keep a little candy for themselves, but the more they give the Switch Witch, the better their toy will be!
The Switch Witch eats the candy over the course of the year. Just when she runs out it’s Halloween time again and time for another visit from the Switch Witch.
Another great idea is to hand out non-candy items at your house. Glow sticks, temporary tattoos, mini play-doh containers, or Halloween themed mini-toys are just a few ideas. This is a great way to support those who have food allergies, as the Food Allergy Research & Education encourages communities to participate in the Teal Pumpkin Project.
This campaign encourages people to raise awareness of food allergies by providing non-food treats for trick-or treaters and painting a pumpkin teal to place in front of their house. Food allergies and sensitivities are on the rise, as is the number of people on-board with eating whole, real, non-GMO, unprocessed foods. This is wonderful for those who want to avoid gluten and other common food sensitivities/allergies as well as lots of high fructose corn syrup.
Now for some recipes! This week I wanted to share with you some YUMMY pumpkin recipes you may want to try. These are much healthier than their regular sugar-filled versions, and your kids are sure to love them.
Healthy Kid-Friendly Halloween Recipes
Enjoy getting creative with your kids or doing more craft projects? Check out these 50+ fun and festive Halloween treats from Super Healthy Kids!
Looking for more delicious recipes? Check out our list of healthy pumpkin recipes and back-to-school recipes.
In Health & Happiness,
Janell