The biggest candy day of the year is fast approaching and I’m sure your little wizards and princesses are planning their costumes and dreaming about mountains of candy! So what is your family’s candy policy? We’ve heard of some families that just let the kids have at it until the candy is gone. This usually lasts about 3 days or so. In our house, we let them dip in for a small treat once per day until they forget about it and then we throw away the items us parents have picked over! The fact is, there’s no one right approach and each family needs to decide what works best for them.

Here are a few healthy strategies for trick or treating:

  • Eat a healthy dinner before trick or treating. Well fed children are less likely to go overboard on eating treats afterward.
  • Check the loot for safety. Only keep treats that are in their original wrappers.
  • Buy back candy for money or other non-candy items like crayons, colouring books, animal figures etc.
  • Store the treats out of sight.
  • First offer healthy snacks and offer treats only at a specific time of the day (ie. after school, after dinner, after their healthy snack)
You can also set a good example in your neighbourhood by giving out healthier, non-candy items such as:

  • Stickers or temporary tattoos
  • Pencils, erasers
  • Play Dough
  • Bubbles
  • Sidewalk chalk
  • Noisemakers
If you have any healthy Halloween tips we’d love to hear from you! We here at Coco & Tini would like to wish you and your little pumpkins a very safe and Happy Halloween! P.S. Don't forget to enter to win a Coco & Tini gift basket by joining our mailing list at www.cocoandtini.com.