The spooky season is upon us, and it’s time to celebrate! Crack out the skeleton cats and eerie soundtracks as you deck out your home for all those eager little hands hoping for a treat instead of a trick.
While you’re prepping your home for an invasion of children, each in fun-themed Halloween costumes, you may be a little worried about your sugar intake. Around 3 in 5 Americans over the age of 2 happily exceed the suggested sugar intake limit, shoveling bite-sized candy bars and delicious morsels into their mouths every October 31st. Unfortunately, that can be a little rough for anyone hoping to lose weight or monitor health needs.
Our Redliro team wants to offer some fantastic low-sugar alternatives and tips, so you don’t have to sacrifice the spirit Halloween brings.
#1 – Read the Labels
All kinds of Halloween treats, from peanut butter-filled M&Ms to homemade popcorn balls, have fantastic marketing designed to entice even the most disciplined diner. As you browse through the shelves of packaged candies, be sure to watch out for hidden ingredients. While organic, low-sugar, or “natural” ingredients may appear that way, when you look at the actual sugar content, you may be surprised.
Just because a company is using natural sugar cane doesn’t mean downing 37% of your daily value in one bite is a good idea. Try to balance nutritious snacks so you get a little spike here and there but not a milkshake's worth of sugar.
#2 – Eating is Only Part of the Spirit Halloween Brings
Yes, we all love gathering around a kiddie pool to bob for candied apples, but there are so many other activities during Halloween. This is right smack in the best time for Fall colors and cool weather, giving you plenty of events you can enjoy that don’t involve taking an antacid in the morning. Some of the better, more healthy alternatives include:
Pumpkin picking and carving
Halloween themed yoga
Local 5 and 10K runs
Costumed fun runs
Hayrides through the woods
Spooky scavenger hunts
Corn maze challenges
Glow in the Dark/nighttime game
Halloween dance party
And many, many more
It comes down to filling your days with fun events that thrill your mind and body but not your sugar levels.
#3 – Use Fresh Fruits for Food
Just because you see Halloween costumes everywhere doesn’t mean you must use chocolate in every dish you make. There are tons of unique Halloween-themed treats you can have at home that will support the spooky season. These can be DIY projects you do to pass the time, hand out at parties, or celebrate with your kiddos without sacrificing delicious tastes. Some of the more well-known ones include:
Apple Shrunken Heads: Carved and baked apples that resemble creepy faces.
Pumpkin Fruit Bowls: Hollowed-out mini pumpkins filled with fruit salad.
Ghostly Bananas: Halved bananas with chocolate chip eyes and mouths resembling ghosts.
Orange Jack-o'-Lanterns: Hollowed oranges filled with fruit salad and carved with spooky faces.
Witch's Finger Carrots: Carrots carved into finger shapes, with an almond or olive slice as the fingernail.
Stuffed Bell Pepper Monsters: Bell peppers carved with eerie faces stuffed with a savory filling like rice, beans, or ground meat.
Mummy Eyes Cucumber Bites: Cucumber slices topped with cream cheese and an olive slice resembling mummy eyes.
Broccoli Brain Dip: A creamy dip served in the center of a broccoli floret arrangement that looks like a brain.
There are many more. You can search through Pinterest or Instagram under the hashtag #healthyhalloween for others that will inspire the inner ghoulish chef waiting to come out this season.
#4 – Don’t Go Crazy with “Sugar-Free” Foods
Cutting back on your sugar intake has been proven to lower calories and body weight as well as improve your overall health. In many cases, that means shopping for foods with the beloved “Sugar-Free” label on them.
The problem here is these foods often mean real sugar is out and artificial sweeteners are in. While you could be reducing your general sugar intake, you will also be eating “chemically manufactured molecules” that do not exist in nature. This can lead to other health risks and are often associated with cancer, diabetes, and, in some rare cases, cancer.
To put it simply, if you are going to eat sugar – stick to the real stuff from sugar cane or proven-safe, natural sugars like stevia, yacon syrup, monk fruit, and the like.
#5 – Keep a Close Eye on the Halloween Booze
Spiking the punch is a time-honored activity of any gathering, especially during a fun event like the spooky season. While the spirit Halloween brings is always a fun social scene, you may want to be a little careful of your alcohol intake.
Many alcoholic drinks contain some form of sugar. Liqueurs, cider, fortified wines, and a lot of mixed drinks have syrups or underlying ingredients that can contain up to 15 teaspoons of sugar. You may have to go with straight beverages on the rocks or avoid them altogether. There is nothing wrong with being the designated driver dressed as Frankenstein’s monster this Halloween season.
#6 – Eat Dinner Early
The final and probably most straightforward tip we can offer is to eat a complete, nutritious meal before you put on your Halloween costumes and hit the pavement for trick or treating. When you have a belly filled to the max with fruits, vegetables, and a home-cooked meal, all those little candy bars don’t look so attractive.
Plan out your meal like you would Thanksgiving. Think of the planning stage as a “dry run” and create a mouthwatering meal early enough in the day to leave you feeling satiated and energized for the night.
Wrapping Up (Like a Mummy)
Halloween is one of the most memorable holidays we celebrate. It gives everyone a chance to dress up as their favorite ghoul, monster, or trending topic (looking at you, Stranger Things). With all the fun you’re going to have, you don’t have to sacrifice your health goals. A little proactive planning goes a long way to keeping your mind, body, and spirit fortified against an onslaught of sugary treats.
If you want more help maintaining that hard-earned shape you love, try any of our versatile Redliro treadmills. We offer all the convenience of quick and easy storage on top of critical exercise equipment you can use at home, in the office, or when you want a 20-minute warm-up to your long candy hunt this spooky season. Visit our store to learn more!
