Guilt-Free Halloween Candy Guide
Written by Danilae Smith
Candy Crunch Time
The Tricks to Having a Treat-Filled Halloween Without the Guilt
Halloween is a holiday most children look forward to: dressing up in costumes, wearing outrageous make-up and, of course, eating candy. Though it seems like harmless fun, Halloween and all its trick-or-treat glory can be a big setback for parents trying to maintain healthy living and eating standards for children, as the push toward a healthy diet is put on hold during the Halloween season. With that said, no one wants to take away from a child’s Halloween experience. So, what’s a parent in the OC to do? Designed to ensure children and parents enjoy the fun of Halloween, sans guilt, these simple steps make Halloween a fun and healthy happening.
Fun Handouts
Instead of passing out candy, try handing out fun alternatives. Good things to give away for younger children: yo-yo’s, bubbles, tattoos and stickers. For older kids, try handing out sugar free gum. Party supply stores are great resources to find toys and trinkets perfect for Halloween.
Set Limits
Let children pick an agreed upon number — five is usually enough — of favorite candy choices before trick-or-treating. When kids come home, allow them to sort out the candy, store the favorites and throw away or donate the rest.
Keep the Candy Away
Do not let children keep Halloween candy in their rooms. Instead, keep it in the kitchen or in a special hiding place. This way, managing sugar intake is much easier for parents and guardians.
Forget the Favorites
When buying candy to hand out, don’t choose kids’ favorites, buy candy that is less enticing to eat. This way, if there is left over, it’s not as tempting to eat.
House Hunting
Set aside a number of houses to be visited for the night. Once that number has been hit, it’s time to go home.
Keep a Full Stomach
Before sending little ones out, make sure they are fed a healthy dinner and pre-approved dessert. This will help curb hunger pangs and sweet tooth cravings during their trick-or-treating adventure.
Put Away the Pillow Case
Send kids out with smaller loot bags and only allow them to be filled up one time. Do not let them use pillow cases, they will collect much more candy than they will eat.
Be an Example
Children watch how parents are eating. If a parent tells a child to eat healthy and stay away from sweets, it’s something he or she has to practice.
Top Five Candy Choices to Avoid
Even though these picks are a hit among trick-or-treaters, they’re filled with sugar and are high in calorie count. Because of it, these are Parenting OC’s picks for candy to avoid this Halloween. Divided into regular sized and fun sized, the nutritional facts speak for themselves.
Baby Ruth
Regular sized bar:
275 calories
117 calories from fat
13 grams of fat
7 grams of saturated fat
32 grams of sugar
Fun sized bar:
83 calories
53 calories from fat
4 grams of fat
2 grams of saturated fat
10 grams of sugar
Snickers
Regular sized bar
271 calories
122 calories from fat
13.6 grams of fat
5.2 grams of saturated fat
28.8 grams of sugar
Fun sized bar
80 calories
35 calories from fat
4 grams of fat
1.5 grams of saturated fat
8.5 grams of sugar
Mr. Goodbar
Regular sized bar
264 calories
146 calories from fat.
16 grams of fat
7 grams of saturated fat
23 grams of sugar
Fun sized bar
100 calories
54 calories from fat
6 grams of fat
2.5 grams of saturated fat
8 grams of sugar
Milky Way
Regular sized bar
262 calories
90 calories from fat
10 grams of fat
7 grams of saturated fat
34.6 grams of sugar
Fun sized bar
81 calories
28 calories from fat
3.1 grams of fat
2.2 grams of saturated fat
10.7 grams of sugar
Mounds
Regular sized bar
230 calories
120 calories from fat
13 grams of fat
10 grams of saturated fat
21 grams of sugar
Fun sized bar
92 calories
45 calories from fat
5.1 grams of fat
3.9 grams of saturated fat
8.8 grams of sugar
Top Five Candy Choices to Try
Though these sweet treats are low in sugar, fat and calories, they will satisfy any sugar craving and have made, POC’s top candy choices to try.
Smarties (For every roll)
25 calories
0 from fat
No fat
6.3 grams of sugar
Dum Dum pops (For two suckers)
51 calories
0 calories from fat
No fat
10 grams of sugar
Jolly Ranchers (For three pieces)
70 calories
0 calories from fat.
No fat
11 grams of sugar
Gobstoppers (For every piece)
60 calories
0 from fat
No fat
14 grams of sugar
Pixie Stix (For seven sticks)
60 calories
0 calories from fat.
No fat.
15 grams of sugar
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