“Better Than” Halloween

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I’ll be honest. Halloween is not my favorite holiday. Being that I’ve become a “real food” foodie, I find that there’s too much sugar, too much corn syrup, too much food dye, and overall, too many artificial ingredients. As a child, Halloween was not a big deal in my house. We did not go Trick-or-Treating, but I do remember collecting an enormous amount of candy from carnivals and other fall festivals. I would eat myself into a sugar coma and then live on the remaining candy for weeks. A few years ago, I decided to develop a “Better Than” Halloween for my family. You CAN enjoy the day without creating a toxic burden for your body.

Some of the suggestions in this post are centered on real-food choices. Some offer a “better than” option for processed candy or other sweets. In my house, I strive to offer real-food meals three times a day. We do, on occasion, enjoy a processed treat. You have to find the balance that works for you and your family.

THE PROBLEM WITH CONVENTIONAL TREATS

Some people give Halloween a treat-pass, because it only comes around once a year. (They conveniently ignore Christmas and Valentine’s Day and Easter and birthdays.) They say,

“Let the kids gorge on candy! We did when we were kids, and we turned out okay.”

But the thing is, we’re not okay. As a society, we’re obese, diabetic, cancerous, and riddled with autoimmune disease. We bear the scars of our past choices.

While we’ve been trained to think of candy as “just a piece of candy,” let’s take a hard look at the ingredients in three common Halloween treats:

• SKITTLES
  • sugar, corn syrup, hydrogenated palm kernel oil, less than 2% of: citric acid, tapioca dextrin, modified corn starch, natural and artificial flavors, colors (red 40 lake, yellow 5 lake, blue 2 lake, yellow 6 lake, titanium dioxide, blue 1 lake, yellow 6, red40, yellow 5, blue 1), sodium citrate, carbonara wax.
• CANDY CORN
  • sugar, corn syrup, confectioner’s glaze (shellac), salt, dextrose, gelatin, artificial flavor, honey, yellow 6, sesame oil, yellow 5, red 3
• SNICKERS
  • milk chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, chocolate, skim milk, lactose, milk fat, soy lecithin), peanuts, corn syrup, sugar, palm oil, skim milk, lactose, salt, egg whites, artificial flavor

Chewy candy (which happens to be my favorite), is not just “chewy candy.” It’s all of the things that produce the sweet, chewy candy. The same is true for candy bars. We need to learn to see our food as ingredients, and not just the sum of parts.

COMMON CANDY INGREDIENTS

So let’s take a look at some of the ingredients found in conventional candies. Let’s try to understand what these labels mean.

• ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR
  • The term “artificial flavor” is disturbing. According to the US Food and Drug Administration, “The term artificial flavor or artificial flavoring means any substance which is not derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, fish, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation.” The label innocently says “artificial flavor” because that sounds better than “chemicals.”
• CORN STARCH
  • Corn starch is made from genetically modified corn. GMO foods create new proteins that may trigger allergic reactions and autoimmune reactivity in the body. GMO seeds are genetically modified to withstand pesticides and herbicides like glyphosate, which is then sprayed heavily around the plants.
• CORN SYRUP
  • Corn Syrup is cheaper to use than sugar. It’s absorbed more quickly into the blood stream. It increases hunger and commonly leads to insulin resistance, high bold pressure, and fatty liver disease.
• HYDROGENATED OILS
  • Hydrogenated oils, like those used in Skittles, are used to make foods more shelf stable, but they cause heart damage. They raise “bad” cholesterol and lower “good” cholesterol.
• SYNTHETIC FOOD DYE
  • Synthetic food-dyes were originally made from coal tar and are now made from petroleum products. Blue 1, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 cause hyperactivity. Some food dyes have been implicated in cancer. Blue 1 has been shown to cross the blood brain barrier.
• TITANIUM DIOXIDE
  • Titanium Dioxide can be absorbed into the blood stream through the digestive process. In animal studies, exposure to titanium dioxide during digestion led to organ damage and colon tumors. This is banned in the European market. Skittles are made using an entirely different recipe in Europe.

“BETTER THAN” STORE BOUGHT OPTIONS

As part of our Halloween tradition, we attend a church Trunk-or-Treat. Sometimes we walk our neighborhood with friends. My son collects a TON of conventional candy. I make trades. I know these trades are not “real food” options, but I consider them to be “better than” the alternative.

Before Halloween, I always purchase a few “better than” treats to replace what he collects. If he wants to eat a package of skittles while Trick-or-Treating, he’ll come to me and make a trade. I hand him the “better than” option. He still gets to enjoy a treat, but I know that it’s much less toxic for his body.

I like the options shown below. At one time or another, I’ve purchased all of these items:

• PROS:
  • Options like these use “better than” ingredients.
  • They taste as good or better than conventional candy.
  • With a quick trade at social events, my family can “participate” without toxic side effects.
• CONS:
  • The “better than” options are still full of sugar and should not be consumed in mass quantities.
  • They are expensive by comparison.
  • They are harder to source.

THE “SWITCH WITCH”

So what do we do with the giant bag of candy? Just like any other kid, my son goes through it when he gets home. Sometimes we talk about the ingredients. I think it’s important for our kids to know that a candy bar isn’t just a “candy bar.” They need to be able to think of each item as all the things that went into its production. Sometimes he’ll choose a few pieces to keep. I give him the small stash of “better than” choices that I bought at the store. No one should consume a pillowcase full of candy. We talk about what such a quantity does to the body, whether it’s “better than” candy or not.

After he’s made his picks, my son places the candy outside his bedroom door. In the night, the “Switch Witch” comes to take the bag away. In its place, she leaves a toy that my son’s been wanting. Our “Switch Witch” is not wealthy. Her offering is generally worth fifteen or twenty dollars.

At the age of nine, my son knows that I’m the “Switch Witch.” He doesn’t care. Sometimes I feel like he’s more excited for the “Switch Witch” than for Christmas morning. He does not miss his candy. He loves that he gets a gift out of Halloween. In his excitement, he’s tried to tell other kids about the “Switch Witch.” They always stare at him with confusion. He thinks they’re missing out.

“BETTER THAN” RECIPES FOR HALLOWEEN

PUMPKIN PALEO PIZZA PEPPERS

You can make these Pumpkin Paleo Pizza Peppers using this recipe for Paleo Pizza Peppers. Instead of slicing the peppers in half, take the top off in one cut and pull the seeds from the middle. Cut faces into each pepper and then stuff them with the “pizza” filling. Bake them on a cookie sheet, standing upright, for 25-30 minutes with the tops face down on the pan.

“CANDY CORN” GELATIN JARS

These “Candy Corn” Gelatin Jars are made using fruit and vegetable juice, grass-fed gelatin, and coconut yogurt. Powdered sugar is optional in the final layer. They make for a yummy, dye-free, nearly sugar-free treat.

These are quick to prepare and require very little cleanup. They do take a while to set in the refrigerator, so plan ahead. If I start in the morning, these are generally ready by mid-afternoon. Whether using these “Candy Corn” Gelatin Jars for Halloween or a random Tuesday, they’re a favorite in our home.

FROZEN BANANA POPS

These Frozen Banana Pops make a great party treat or cold snack post Trick-or-Treating. They are made with unflavored, unsweetened coconut yogurt, dark chocolate chips, and dye free sprinkles. By sourcing the right ingredients, these are gluten free and dairy free too.

These can be made very low sugar if you just choose yogurt and sprinkles with a little chocolate drizzle. They are sweet no matter what toppings you choose. The bananas provide plenty of sweetness.

GREEN APPLE MONSTER MOUTHS

FINAL THOUGHTS

Design your own “Better Than” Halloween. Enjoy it. Don’t feel pressured to change all of your Halloween traditions at once. Each “better than” choice is a small step toward better health.

PRODUCTS I RECOMMEND FOR THESE RECIPES