Healthy Halloween Tips for Kids
One of the kids’ favourite holidays is almost here; Halloween!
However, as much fun as Halloween is for kids, it can also be a time when they overindulge in unhealthy amounts of sugar. Think gummy worms and spiders, fizzy drinks, toffee apples and lots of chocolate frogs.
In America, children consume up to 7000 calories on Halloween; this is the equivalent of three cups of sugar and the same as eating 13 McDonald’s Big Macs! Although Halloween is not as popular in the UK as it is in America, it has certainly grown in popularity over the last decade and ‘trick or treating’ for sugary sweets has become the norm for many youngsters around the UK.
As 1 in 3 children are overweight or obese by the time they leave primary school and children under the age of 10 have more than 179,000 teeth extracted each year, it’s hardly surprisingly that Halloween comes with a lot of worry. Of course, we want children to enjoy themselves, but consuming lots of sugar is bad for their wellbeing and we must find healthy alternatives.
Don’t let sugar haunt you this Halloween, here are some recipes and additional ideas to make Halloween a little bit healthier for kids:
Make a veggie skeleton
Create a scary skeleton with your favourite vegetables. Use celery, carrots and peppers to create the structure and then raisins and sweetcorn for the details.
Create spiders on a log
Cut celery, apple and carrots into thick slices and spread with peanut butter. Add toy spiders on to look like they are stuck on a log, you could also use raisins for an edible version.
Alternatives to sweets
If trick-or-treaters visit you over Halloween, consider giving out alternative treats to sweets such as stickers or balloons.
Trick or treating
Walking is a great physical exercise for people of all ages. Lengthen your trick or treat route so you can pack in at least 30 minutes of brisk walking with the children (they shouldn’t mind if they are walking for treats!)
Dance competition to scary songs
Kids Halloween parties are always active, put on a scary Halloween playlist and get kids to recreate these movements.
Walk like a zombie
Hold arms up straight up in front of you and quickly turn to the left and to the right. Walk around with arms held up for 10 seconds and repeat.
Spider crawls
Crouching down in a squat position move yourself forward using your legs.
Wake from the dead
Lie on your stomach on the floor with arms by your side. Quickly jump up and stand to do a scary vampire pose.
Creep like a cat
On all fours, move around on your hands and knees like a cat. Do your best spooky meow!
Fly like an owl
Stand still and open both your arms wide. Move arms up and down like you are flapping wings. Hooting is encouraged!
Scary monster
Crouch down on all fours and then jump up into a star shape and make a loud monster growl.
Ride the ghost train
Line up placing your hands on the shoulders of the person in front of you. Start some spooky music and lead people around the room.
As you can see, you can still have lots of fun this Halloween without consuming loads of sugar.
Want to become a healthier school? We are currently running a Healthy Schools Programme offering a free PE Challenge Day and access to the online PE platform, including home learning plans and teacher cpd.
Fill in your details in the form below and we will contact you shortly.