It’s that time of year when those tiny Halloween treats are haunting our attempts at following a healthy diet. Once you crack open that box, it’s hard to resist the temptation. Let’s face it, one little chocolate won’t kill us, but honestly, who just stops at one? Before you know it, you find yourself surrounded by tiny wrappers because you want to try one of each!Did you know that one of those tiny chocolate bars has roughly 80 calories? Eating one might not make a big impact on your daily intake, but having more than one certainly can.
Here are 5 great tips to surviving Halloween temptations:
1. Don’t buy candy until the day before or even the day of Halloween. If it’s sitting in the pantry weeks before the big day, you’ll be tempted to try those tasty treats;
2. Don’t buy your favourite candy and then hope that trick-or-treaters don't come to your door. If you have candy that you’re not crazy about, chances are you won’t eat it;
3. Eat a healthy supper before giving out Halloween candy. This will make it less tempting to dig into the candy bowl throughout the evening;
4. Opt for giving out healthy Halloween treats such as: glow sticks, temporary tattoos, play-doh, pencils, stickers or trading cards. If you want to give out a food snack, try fruit leathers, raisin boxes, juice boxes or microwave popcorn packages;
5. Get rid of extra candy. You can bring your left over chocolates to soup kitchens, homeless shelters and outreach programs like Streetworks (in Edmonton). Or, give it to a neighbourhood kid who is too old to trick-or-treat. If none of those options work for you, then just throw it out.
Happy Halloween!
Ginette Markham is a Registered Dietitian at the Leduc Beaumont Devon Primary Care Network.
