Halloween trick-or-treating is a cherished tradition for many children and provides a great opportunity to spend time with your family. For many kids, this can be an exciting time of year as they get their costumes ready and their buckets out to fill with candy! Halloween can also be a frustrating time for parents who dread the thought of all the leftover candy and the tremendous amount of sugar consumed on one day! Here are seven helpful tips on how to keep kids safe and healthy this Halloween:
Set limits
Try to set candy limits ahead of time and discuss it with your kids before they go trick-or-treating, so there won’t be any disappointed children at the end of the night.
Choose the right bag
Make sure the size of your child’s trick-or-treat bag is appropriate for their age.
Keep moving
Walk door to door when trick or treating instead of driving. It will keep you moving and also tire the kids out – potentially limiting the number of houses you will hit before the end of the night. Try making a competition out of who can walk the most steps or run to the next house the fastest!
Think outside the box
Trade the candy collected for non-edible treats such as toys or arts and crafts. Or consider introducing the “switch witch” – offering to buy back some of the candy and providing them with extra spending money at the toy store as a reward.
Eat a healthy meal before trick-or-treating
Before your kids venture out in their costumes, make sure they eat a healthy meal. With full stomachs, they won’t be so tempted to dig into their bag of goodies before they get home!
Check the candy
Kids can’t wait to get home and start enjoying their candy once they’re done trick-or-treating, but it’s very important that you make sure to check their candy before they consume it. Throw away any spoiled, unwrapped or suspicious items. And if you have babies and toddlers around, keep in mind that many candies and candy wrappers can be a choking hazard for them. If your child has food allergies, give a pass on any treats without a label or homemade treats by someone unfamiliar with your allergies where cross contamination is likely.
Have fun
Halloween comes once a year! Try not to focus too much on the amount of candy consumed on Halloween. It’s what your family eats every day that has the most impact on their health and well-being.
Have questions? Book an appointment with a virtual doctor at no cost
If the Halloween sugar binge got you or your child sick, or you simply want to speak to an Ontario doctor about the health and wellbeing of your family, visit www.tuliphealth.ca. Tulip Health is a virtual, phone-based, walk-in clinic that provides non-emergency related healthcare. Tulip Health offers same-day or next-day appointments any day of the week. It’s easy to use and it’s covered by OHIP. To book an appointment, visit www.tuliphealth.ca.
