Americans buy about 600 million pounds of candy during Halloween. After trick-or-treating, one child brings home about 11,000 calories worth of candy and chocolates. Since 2014 Halloween has replaced Valentine's as the country's sweetest national holidays.

These figures are more than enough to give any parent their share of Halloween scare. Do you want to do something about all these without being a killjoy? Below are tips for a healthy Halloween that you might want to know.

The Joys of Giving Homemade Treats for Halloween

Halloween is one of the most anticipated celebrations throughout the world. Kids and adults dress up in fun costumes; there are parties everywhere, and above all, there is a lot of food too! It's almost like the spooky version of Christmas.

Going for healthier food options during this celebration is a smart choice. However, it comes with a lot of joys too.  

First, preparing Halloween-themed treats & snacks is like therapy. It makes you slow down and not rush on the grocery aisle grabbing as many packs of sweets as you can. The thought of giving out something unique that you made yourself gives lots of good vibes too.

Second, you can customize the ingredients that go into your treats. This is particularly helpful when you expect trick-or-treaters who have food sensitivities. In the end, this allows kids with allergies to enjoy the celebration as much as their non-allergic friends.

Last, preparing Halloween treats is a fun activity you can do with your kids. Let's say you will be giving out spooky cupcakes. The little ones can add sprinkles or googly eyes to meringue ghosts. The bigger kids can help you make your cupcake batter.

Easy, Fun and Healthy Halloween Food Ideas

You can always buy "healthier" candy options for trick-or-treaters. However, if you want to get your share of the joys we have above, the best way is to get your hands busy. Take the time to prepare healthy homemade sweets.

Now, here are two things to remember when making homemade treats:

1. First, kids love food that looks fun.
2. Second, kids will love "new" food that resembles their favorites.

Are you new to making healthy Halloween treats? You can start with basic dessert or treat recipes and a dash of creativity. Here are some ideas you can draw inspiration from:

Spooky Pocket Pies

Meringue Ghosts

Ghoul Cookies

Halloween Fudge & cupcakes

Scary Cake Pops

Tip: It will be a bonus if you can sneak some veggies or fruits into these homemade Halloween treats. For example, you can make pumpkin or strawberry puree as filling for your spooky pocket pies.

Want to stick to everyone's favorites? Here is a list of homemade candy recipes of favorite Halloween candies. Imagine making Tootsie Roll, Kitkat, Gummy candies, and even M&Ms right in your kitchen!  

#TealPumpkinProject - Halloween fun for Allergic Kids

Got a kid with food allergies? Do you know someone in the neighborhood who has a kid with food allergies? Make Halloween fun for them too by taking part in the Teal Pumpkin Project.

Aside from making homemade treats, you can give these kids to bring home non-food treats. This will be good especially that we just cannot tell what food allergens trigger an attack.

Participating in the Teal Pumpkin Project is also beneficial for kids who are not allergic to any food product but who have family members with food allergies. The reason for this is because allergies tend to run in families. We just cannot tell the triggers and the onset of the symptoms.

Instead of food treats, you can give out Halloween-themed toys and costume accessories such as vampire fangs. You can also treat the kids to books, notepads, pens and other educational items.

Would you like for these kids to enjoy food treats like all the other kids? You can partner with a local food shop where you hand out coupons for their store to allergic kids. This way they can pick food items they love that are safe for them to eat.

If you want to take part in the project just display teal pumpkins outside your house. This will let allergic trick-or-treaters know that you have treats especially for them.

Are you ready to kickstart spooky season? If so, call in the little ones and plan out their happiest Halloween yet. Good luck!