Happy Halloween!

Or, happy Orange and Black day for many schools and teachers out there.

Halloween is usually a time when we indulge in too many treats. It can be difficult to not give into peer pressure and stuff our faces full of sugar, candy and chocolate. A healthy Halloween may seem like an oxymoron to you, but I've included some tips to try to be a good role model and make your Halloween as nutritious as possible.

Try these options to hand out to trick-or-treaters (adapted from http://cspinet.org/new/pdf/halloween.pdf).

Alternatives to Food:

• Temporary tattoos or stickers
• Small plastic spiders, ghosts, or skeletons
• Super bouncy balls
• Halloween-themed pencils, erasers, or pencil toppers
• Spooky plastic rings or false teeth
• Bracelets or hair accessories
• Toothbrushes
• Coupons or certificates - if you don't get too many kids! (an example pictured below taken from Weighty Matters blog)

Healthier Food Options:

• Individual packages of raisins or other dried fruit
• 100% fruit leathers
• 100% juice boxes
• Small water bottles
• Sugar-free gum
• Mini bags of popcorn
• Apples
• Bags of nuts or seeds such as almonds or sunflower seeds
• Crackers
• Individual apple sauce

For candy, if you must, try:

• Gum
• Fruit-flavored snacks/rollups/gummies
• Small lollypops (they last longer)
• Fat-free or lowfat candy like Twizzlers, Skittles, York Peppermint Patties, or Junior Mints
• Only giving out one fun-sized candy per child (whole handfuls reinforce over-indulgence)

Students are bound to have candy no matter how hard you try to provide nutritious or alternative options. Make sure students and children eat a healthy meal before trick or treating so they don't over indulge and the candy is seen as a dessert. During school hours, make sure children aren't only eating candy in their lunches. Have healthy options available and tell them they can eat their treats at the end of lunch.

This doesn't have to be a bad thing!

Vegetables are exciting!

ENJOY!