As a kid Halloween was my favorite holiday because we got to dress up and come home with a pillowcase full of candies and chocolates.  To me then it was delightful.  Now, as a parent it can be a little frightful.  Safety issues with walking dark roads aside, what scares me is the enormous amounts of sweets and little plastic junk that comes home. The fortnight of Halloween festivities (yes it seems like 2 weeks what with parties, parades and neighbor’s decorations up since mid September) made me think of all the treats given out that are also pretending to be something else.  It’s like candy dressing up for Halloween as health food.  It irks me that these candy alternatives that might be just as bad or even worse than a chocolate bar and that they’re marketed to trick the consumer into thinking they’re good for the kids.

My preschooler got 3 Shrek Fruit Rollups which he shared with his brothers.  The green tongue afterward is a tell-tale sign that they’re not good for them.  I’m sure they were purchased with the best intentions— of buying something healthier than candy.  But they’re really no better.  The green color is so bad for kids, especially ones who already have attention problems.  And speaking from a mother who has one, it can exacerbate my child’s behavior.  As I’ve said yellow 5, red 40 and other artificial colors are banned in 7 countries and have warning labels in others.  It’s as full of sugar or HFCS as other candies, so adding vitamins healthy doesn’t make.

We actually don’t get trick-or-treaters at our house because our street is busy and the houses far apart.  But I give them when we have class parties and parades.  If you’re wondering what I prefer to give out at Halloween that isn’t so bad for kids’ health here’s a list.

Glow sticks and bracelets (I love these for the kids to wear/hold during trick-or-treating)

Mini playdough pots

Bubbles

Goldfish packets

Pretzel packs

Pencils

Organic lollipops (yes, it is candy but it’s naturally colored and flavored and pesticide free.  I get mine at TJ’s.  Trader Joe’s sells naturally flavored and colored gummy bears and other candies too.)

But honestly I still also give out chocolate candies.  I prefer to give Nestle and Cadbury brands than Hershey’s because of their ingredients are slightly better. 

Halloween is still joyful for me and my kids and they’ve already decided what they’re going to be next year.  And I think I might have figured out my costume for the grown-ups party — Supermom!  Because, we can be whatever we want on that one day, even if it’s not close to reality.