A Healthy Halloween Treat

I love Halloween. The weather is great, apple cider is in season and it is fun to see kids dressed up for trick or treating.

The only thing I don't love about Halloween is the amount of sugar kids consume in a short period of time. 

Glow stick bracelets as Halloween treats

Most fun size Halloween candies have 7 - 12 grams of sugar in each of them. If your child eats 30 pieces of Halloween candy, it is like drinking eight cans of Coke!

Last year we were looking for a healthy alternative to candy... but something the kids would still enjoy.

We gave out glow stick bracelets as a Halloween treat and kids loved them! We helped kids put them on so they could wear them instantly. 

We just received glow stick bracelets in the mail again this year as we purchase them online. On Amazon.com, they are approximately $.08 each, which is cheaper than a fun size Kit Kat ($.09 each) or Snickers ($.16 each). 

Enjoy treats 20 percent of the time... but eight cans of Coke for anyone, especially a child, is too much sugar. 

Consider non-candy Halloween treats, ration out a few treats a night or create a candy buy back program in your house to give them cash instead (just make sure you don't eat it yourself!). 

Choose a healthier Halloween this year and you'll do your whole family, and neighborhood, a favor. 

Visit Amazon.com to see the glow stick bracelets we ordered, they come in packs of 100 or 300. Since we ordered more than $30 worth, we also got free shipping!

See my segment on NBC 25 with Liz MacFarland about healthier Halloween treats: