"BE SAFE-BE SEEN" reflective Wrap-Bands will be distributed as a joint safety initiative with the Delta South MLA during the week of October 25, 2010.

Halloween is that magical time of year when children get to dress up in wonderful and outrageous costumes as they gather a bag full of treats. Halloween is really for children and children should ideally participate in all aspects of Halloween from helping to decorate the house to helping pick their costumes. (Health Canada website). So be safe this year and take a look at our safety links for Halloween.

HAVING A HEALTHY HALLOWEEN

Here are some simple strategies for before and after trick or treating:

• Have a quick and healthy supper before kids go out trick or treating. For example: serve mini sandwiches, baby carrots and yogurt with fruit. Well fed children will be less likely to over eat treats.

• Cut down on the treats your children collect by limiting the amount of trick or treating. Stay on your street for example.

• Make sure your children know they must have you check the loot for safety. Keep only treats that are in their original wrappers.

• When you are passing out treats give just a few rather than a big handful. Set a good example by limiting the candy you eat. Remember you are a role model.

• Ration your children’s treats over several days. They can select a few pieces from the treat bag to have along with their healthy snack or at meals instead of dessert. It is often best to store the treats out of sight and not in the child’s room.

• Buy back candy for money or a special treat such as a visit to the zoo, stuffed toy or movie evening.

• Replace trick or treating with a party for the children. Plan spooky games and healthy colourful Halloween food for a fun time.

Surprise your trick or treaters this year with some of these items:

• Stickers or temporary tattoos
• Coloured chalk
• Finger puppets or rubber spiders
• Pencils, erasers or pencil toppers
• Individually wrapped clay
• Bubbles and wands
• Yo-yos
• Noisemakers

Think beyond candy for treats that are cool but not sweet:

• Sugarless gum
• Pre packaged cheese and crackers
• Trail mix, nuts, corn nuts
• Granola bars
• Small bags of pretzels or popcorn
• Gold Fish cracker packages
• Individual hot chocolate packages
• Real Fruit leathers

Check out these websites for more Halloween ideas:

Why not recycle old toys:

As for the treats you give out, instead of candies, why not give non-food items like stickers, balloons, pencils, rubber or plastic animals, temporary tattoos, bubbles, hair accessories, mini-cars or necklaces? The dollar stores are full of ideas.

She suggests small boxes of raisins, all-fruit roll-ups, sesame snaps, sugar-free gum, animal crackers, small containers of fruit or pudding, bags of pretzels, bags of nuts, whole grain granola bars, cheese string, boxed juice, cello bags of micro-wave popcorn or individual hot chocolate mixes.

Here's here are some of the cold, fat facts on calorie counts: Aero, 40 calories; Butterfinger, 100; Caramilk, 50; Coffee Crisp, 80 (oh my, I went through six of those last Halloween); Crispy Crunch, 70; Crunchie, 50; Glossette Peanuts, 80; Kit Kat, 80; Oh Henry, 80; Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, 90; Skittles Original, 60; Smarties, 50; Twix, 50.

"The calories add up quickly," she says. "Remember, it takes about one mile or 1.6 kilometres of walking to burn off 100 calories."

Which means I ate 4.8 miles of Coffee Crisps. Looks like this year, I'll have to switch to Smarties.

The most common causes of food allergies in children are peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, milk and soy - and the only treatment is to avoid them.

- Symptoms of allergic reaction include itching and hives over large areas of the body, swelling in the throat or tongue, difficulty breathing, dizziness, cramps, nausea or diarrhea.

- Whether your kid has allergies or not, anything that is not wrapped or has wrapping that looks torn, opened, tampered with or otherwise suspicious should be tossed. Tampering is rare. But it happens.

Unlike mild reactions, severe allergic reactions are considered medical emergencies and shouldn’t be treated at home.

Symptoms to look out for include:

• Difficulty breathing or swallowing
• Dizziness or fainting
• Flushed skin
• Hives
• Intense itching
• Nausea or vomiting
• Swollen tongue
• Wheezing

• Give your kids a day or two to enjoy the Halloween candy, then throw the rest away. Many people think this is wasteful. However, if your child has difficulty controlling his candy consumption, this may be what you need to do.

• If you don't want to throw the candy away, give it away. Take the rest of the candy to work or group meetings. Hopefully, the adults will have good control over their candy consumption.

• Put all of the extra treats into a high cabinet in your kitchen or pantry. Out of sight is out of mind, and you can control how many treats your kids get to eat over the next few days.

• Divide up the leftover candy to be eaten a little bit at a time. You will need lunch-sized paper bags, tape, stapler, and maybe some markers or pens.

• Place two or three small treats, or one larger piece, into each plain paper bag. Tape or staple the paper bags closed and keep them in a large box or bag. Let your kids pick out one bag each day.

• Alternately, each bag can be marked with a day or date for the next week or two. Your child gets the treat bag that is marked for each day.

Don’t buy Halloween candy early. You will tempt yourself and your kids to eat too much before the trick-or-treating even starts.

Promote a healthy Halloween by handing out alternatives to candy.

• pencils
• stickers
• party favors
• trading cards

Give out individually packaged non-sugary treats.

• nuts
• raisins
• sunflower seeds
• pumpkin seeds
• cashews
• chips
• microwave popcorn
• whole grain crackers

Have some treats available for children who may have allergies to peanuts or other nuts.

Skip the Halloween candy sale on November 1. Cheap bags of candy sounds like a good buy, but you don't need the sugar and calories.

You might want to host a Halloween party for your kids. That way you have some control over the foods your kids eat. Include fresh vegetables and dips, baked chips and crackers, cheese and lean meats with whole grain breads for make-it-yourself sandwiches. Serve warm apple cider and plenty of water instead of soda.

Suggested Reading

• How a Healthy Diet Helps at School
• How Nutritious is a PB&J?
• Do Children Need Vitamin Supplements?
From About Guides
• Halloween Costume Safety
• Help Your Children Have a Safe and Fun Halloween
• Halloween Coloring Pages

Elsewhere on the Web:

• Halloween Hazards
• Halloween Fun
• Healthy Halloween Treats

Related Articles:

• Halloween Treats - Limit Halloween Treats
• Trick or Treating - Trick or Treating Alternatives
• Halloween Candy
• Halloween Candy - Taking Control of Halloween Candy and Halloween Treats
• Halloween on a Restricted Diet

Here are some ideas to get you started thinking:

• Cheese and cracker packages
• Sugar-free gum
• Cheese sticks
• Juice box packages
• Small packages of nuts or raisins
• Package of instant cocoa mix
• Peanuts in the shell