Strategies to avoid Halloween candy overdose

 

Do you dread Halloween?

Not because ghosts spook you out, or witches freak the daylights out of you - but because you have nightmares about decaying teeth and the sugar rush antics of your kids post the trick or treat mission.

You are not alone….

There is little that you can do to prevent them from dressing up in their monstery-best and going trick or treating, but here are some suggestions/tricks/strategies that parents have tried to keep their kids from devouring the candy. And they swear it works.

Keep on clicking Next to find out what you can do.

Tummy fill before going out

Eat dinner before you take your little ghouls and goblins trick-or-treating. With a tummy filled with nutritious food, they will less likely be tempted to candy taste along the route.

Make sure the “collection bag” is small

Yes, the aim of the game is to fill the container up to the brim. So be smart and hand the kids a smaller pumpkin bucket. Leave the pillow cases at home!

Portion control

Plan ahead with your child on how many pieces of the loot will be kept. Allow a certain number of pieces to be eaten during or after trick-or-treating, and hide the remaining in a secret closet.

Let your tots have a go at one piece a day for the next month!

Barter

Offer non-candy items in exchange for some of the collected sweets. Tempt your little ones with simple things like a trip to the arcade or 20 minutes of the Playstation (who would say no to that?).

Offer to buy them the latest Kendama or a new comic, or even offer to host a sleepover for their friends.

Halloween Fairy

We love the fantasy world for times like this. The Halloween fairy comes and takes whatever candy you leave under your pillow, and replaces it with a special toy.

This is a sure-fire way to make them give up their goodies.

Create a Candy Store

For school-going kids, cash is king. Turn this into a fun project. Set a price for various pieces of candy, and let them set up a store for others to visit.

They earn some spending money, and eat less candy! Mission accomplished.