Guide to a Healthy Halloween Bariatric Style

Medically Reviewed by Katelyn J. Mock, US-Registered Dietician (R.D.)

 

Marking the line between fall and winter, plenty and scarcity, life and death, Halloween is a time of festivity and superstition.

Halloween finds its origins in Celtic paganism where it was believed that the New Year was the time when ghosts and spirits came out to haunt, and the Celts would appease the spirits by giving out treats.

Years later, the popular holiday has become synonymous with playful costumes, trick or treating, and candy. With sugary treats all around, the temptation to splurge is real. But we are here to help you stick to your weight loss surgery diet plan so you don’t throw away months of hard work due to the appeal of the once-a-year holiday.

We bring you some useful unfailing advice that will prevent you from going astray this Halloween after your weight loss surgery in Mexico.

Fill up before

Having a healthy, filling meal before trick-or-treating will prevent your kids from gorging on the contents of their bags filled with candy as soon as they return home and stop overeating because they won’t feel as hungry.

For you as well, having a high-fiber nutritious meal can help prevent overcompensating later on in the day. This meal will also give you the necessary energy to walk around the neighborhood without feeling tired.

Take a different approach

Start a new tradition and put an end to the overabundance of sweets and fat-filled treats that double as the default diet option during Halloween.

Healthy alternatives to sweets: Animal crackers, mini rice cereal or granola bars, and sugar-free hot chocolate packets make good treats. Fruits and juice packets are also healthy alternatives to candy. Besides this, appealing to child psychology is a clever way of preventing excessive eating. Most kids will pick cool toys over sugary treats if given a choice.

Other distractions: Consider keeping a collection of removable tattoos, glow sticks, glow-in-the-dark toys, and other spooky Halloween themed playthings. Often the kids will be so excited by this surprising gift that they will forget all about the chocolates they’ve been craving.

Attractive packaging: Another way of introducing healthy treats is by packaging them differently. You can offer healthy treats and present them in a really cool, spooky way that will make the kids more likely to consume them. A popular suggestion is freezing frozen yogurt in small paper cups and placing them in a cooler with dry ice for a spooky, smoky effect.

Buy candy as close to Halloween as possible: Not only will you likely get a good deal, but you will also limit your own exposure to that candy. The longer it is sitting around the house before trick or treaters show up, the higher the chance of excess snacking.

Put the candy out of sight: A cabinet in the garage, your basement, etc. This way you don’t even have to see it until the night of Halloween.

Avoid buying your favorite candy:  This is pretty obvious. You don’t want to have your biggest temptation at the house.

Avoid decorating with candy: All too often people set out bowls of candy corn or holiday-themed M&M’s for guests to snack on. Instead, decorate with fall scented candles, pumpkins, and leaves that have already fallen.

Snack on popcorn: Have some light air-popped popcorn to snack on while passing out candy.

Decorating the cooler to look like an old treasure chest can make it more amusing for kids to dig into the healthy treats. Or you can carve faces into fruits rather than just pumpkins, crafting a wonderfully filling treat in the process.

Walk, walk, walk

Encourage the children to walk from house to house instead of driving them. This little change can go a long way in burning unwanted calories and staying active. A friendly competition can be started between the kids to see who will walk to the highest number of houses which will make the whole ordeal more fun.

Arrange a Zombie Dance Party

This is a great way to workout after you treat yourself with all those candies.

Make a choice

Video: Eating Behaviour During Holidays

Make the collected candy a fixed part of the meals. Fix a schedule of giving a piece of candy with every meal and stick to this plan. This will keep everyone satisfied without going overboard. The rest of the candy can be kept hidden so that it’s out of sight and out of mind.

You should be just as watchful of the candy consumption as when the kids go to school, you will be left with the tempting chocolates and sweets. Another trick is that when you’re buying the candy to give out to the trick-or-treaters, buy the kind you don’t like so that you are less likely to ravish the leftovers.

Be generous

Don’t hesitate to get rid of the extra candy. Save enough to last everyone in your house for about two weeks and pile up the rest to give away. Homeless shelters, dentists’ offices, troop care package programs, etc. are always on the lookout for contributions. So celebrate the spirit of charity and spread the joy this holiday season.

Fight the urge to splurge. Stay on track with these tips this Halloween’s!