Happy Halloween!

Hello Parents (I'm assuming a good majority or all of you are parents)

Today is halloween. One of the best holidays for our little ones! I remember when I was a kid - come rain or shine I was trick or treating and I WAS going to get as much candy as I possibly could! Well...i'm a fully grown adult now and I still have the urge to get as much candy as possible on halloween. What can I say? I'm seriously a sugar addict! No joke.

That being said it's something i'm identifying and trying to make a plan to fix that problem I have. I'm all for treating yourself every once in a while. However, I take it to the next level when it comes to dessert and candy. I've been doing a lot of research and trying to figure out the best way to beat that addiction.

ANYWAYS, it's Halloween. Which means candy. So I've decided to do some research some of the candy that I will more than likely be ingesting...or not. We'll see. Maybe i'll just have one. ;-)

Here is a list of the worst and best halloween candies:

WORST:

Look for: High fructose corn syrup, trans fats and artificial coloring. NOT just calories.

1. Butterfinger (WHAT?! :-( NOOOOOOOOOOO)
      2 grams saturated fat (hygrenated palm kernal oil - you want to avoid that!)
      Yellow #5 and Red #40 (eeek! not good for kids with attention or hyperactivity issues!)
 
2. Mounds
    3.5 grams of saturated fat (In the MINI size)
    #1 ingredient - corn syrup. (which yes - is high fructose)

3. Baby Ruth
     Hygrenated oils
     High fructose corn syrup

4. Starbursts
    No fat? Good right? NO!
   #1 ingredient - Corn syrup ( High fructose!)
   # 2 ingredient - Hygrenated oil
    JUST SUGAR! - You will think you're hungrier due to this- TRICK - You're not!

5. Candy Corn
    High fructose corn syrup
    Artifical colors
    PURE SUGAR
    and WAYY to easy to eat too many

So, That's the bad news...and I am bummed. I LOVE butterfingers and I love Starbursts (the pink kind)

Next the good news - The best Halloween candies. Now, just because they're better than the alternative. REMEMBER they are still candies and should be consumed to enjoy and in moderation.

BEST:

These can be a little more expensive and sometimes hard to find due to them being sold at whole foods and other places such as that, BUT it's a good idea to know what is healthier anyway. I have personally tried all of these.

1. OCHO cocoa nut bites
     organic
     Vegan
     no artificial sugars
     no trans fats
    Protein

2. Organic Lollipops - TARGET
    Natural flavors
    Organic
    No artificial flavors
    Vegan

3. Justins Peanut Butter Cups - TARGET
    Um... AMAZING.
    Organic
    No trans fats, no artificial colors, and no corn syrup

4. Surf Sweets
    Organic
    Many flavors
    no corn syrup
    no artificial colors
    free of 10 most common allergens

5. Raisinets
    No artificial colors
    Lower in calories and sugar

I want to thank Sarah Fit for the inspiration on this and the information I found was well summed up by her. You can check her out HERE.

I hope this helps you make healthier choices this Halloween. I may be a lost cause but we'll see. I do have raisnets and Justins sitting at home for me!

Thank you for reading again!

And have a Happy and Healthy Halloween!

xoxo
Nikki