The Candy Dilemma

You spend all year long, and twice your allotted budget, to make certain that your pantry is filled with healthy food. And then comes Halloween. Your kids have modeled their costumes in the mirror half a dozen times and they have a list of places that they want to go celebrate; parties, hay rides, corn mazes, and trick or treating. By the end of it all you are stuck with an enormous bag of Red #40 and Potassium Sorbate disguised by artificial strawberry flavors. Images of your kids, sick from a compromised immune system, flood through your head and you sigh as you think of all the antioxidant herbal tinctures you carefully mixed into their applesauce. So what do you do? You can't make a preschooler understand the effects of eating candy. Taking it away while the other children are devouring it may cause resentment and misunderstanding. So is there a way to keep your child healthy during Halloween, without you being mistaken for a ghoulish monster? Here are a few ideas.

1. Strategize- take your child trick or treating only to friends and family who can sympathize. Ask them to buy small toys or give out homemade treats instead of the traditional junk. If they have other ideas, ask them if they would mind you dropping off a few treats beforehand to give out to your children when they arrive. This year, I purchased some little trinkets from Oriental Trading Co. to hand out to our trick or treaters. Last year, I gave away cute homemade kitty cookies. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Black-Cat-Cookies/Detail.aspx and there are tons of other recipe ideas online that kids love.

2. Prepare your children- make sure your kids understand that Halloween is a special holiday and they will be allowed to eat some of their candy only on Halloween night. After that, they can only have one piece a day, etc. Then you can decide how long to keep up the daily dose.

3. The Candy Fairy is Waiting- Start a new tradition by letting your child leave his candy by the door Halloween night. When he wakes up the next morning, the Candy Fairy will come and take the Candy to Candyland. In turn, she leaves behind $5.00 or a new toy.

4. Donate- Last year, we sent some of our Halloween candy to my brother-in-law and his unit that was serving in Iraq. You can also donate to Treats for Troops. Another idea? Recycle and give to local organizations that participate in Thanksgiving Day/Christmas parades. Anybody who participates can always use candy to throw to the crowds as they pass by.

5. Use it for incentives- Only give your child a piece of candy when they accomplish something big-using the potty, learning to write their name, etc.

6. Teach your children well- By instilling good health habits in your children year round, hopefully they will learn that candy is a sometimes food, and though they may want to eat a little, they will understand that their health is most important.