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It’s almost Halloween. You know what that means…The kids are asking for a different costume every other day and are lured by treats placed strategically near the checkout stands at the market.

It’s decision time: How will you handle the loot that comes home with your little ghoul? Will it be a gorge-fest or will the candy-fairy come and take most of the haul off into the sunset?

What the heck - Halloween comes only once a year. Why not let the kids eat their fill? Well, at the risk of sounding preachy, we should consider the health implications that gorging ourselves with candy can have. Bear with me - I’ll keep this brief. You have probably heard about the rising rates of childhood obesity in our country. Obesity can often lead to diabetes - which affects more than 200,000 children in the U.S. What is it? Diabetes is a disease in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin, a hormone that converts sugar and other food into energy for daily life.

Of course, I would never suggest banning candy - it is too delicious. And as parents, we all know that banning certain foods makes them unbearably tempting. So what are some alternatives to the candy-chaos that frequently surrounds this holiday?

Ellyn Satter, an expert on feeding children, believes that kids should learn to read their own bodies and discover their own limits. Some children naturally show restraint. My son, for example, does not. When he was only 3, he ate so much popcorn that he made himself throw up! But you can bet that he never ate himself sick again.

If letting your child stuff himself to the gills isn’t an option for your family, here are a few other ideas:

• Be a good role model - don’t gorge (at least, not in front of them!)
• Encourage your child to pick his or her favorite 10 pieces of candy and buy the rest from her. Encourage her to save some of the money and donate the rest to a charity of her choice.
• Don’t donate the rest of your candy to a charity. In most cases, recipients of charity need all of the nutrients they can get. If it isn’t good for your body, it isn’t good for theirs, either.
• Pick out a few favorites and then trade in the rest for a gift-card, book or small toy

In the end, it’s up to you. Celebrate the best way you know how. Chow on candy…or not. But remember that it is okay to shift the focus of the holiday from the sweets to some fun activities and celebrations. Pot-luck block parties, costume contests and candy trade-in policies are all fun ways to make your Halloween a little less scary this year. The dentist and the doctor will thank you.

Last year, we wrote some other Halloween articles - you can see them here and here.

For some healthier Halloween Treat ideas, please visit our Amazon Store.