
We often struggle with ethics as our family approaches mainstream holiday events. It is a time where we come up against issues of balance; wanting our children to know what’s happening in mainstream culture (to a certain extent) and sheltering them from it at the same time. Halloween is one of those occasions.
We are going to take our children trick-or-treating this evening, but only to 5 or 6 houses of the families in the neighbourhood that we know. We don’t want our children eating candy. We try to limit it as much as possible. On the other hand, we don’t want them feeling they were ‘deprived’ as a child and develop an unhealthy relationship with unhealthy eating later in life. There are so many things about sugar that are problematic, so we try to limit it as much as possible, opting for less refined local sweeteners, like honey and maple syrup, whenever possible.
We find our home better without refined sugars. Rob and I have both experienced marked reactions to it, namely in the form of anxiety. We have yet to discover if this holds true for the children, but I see no reason why it wouldn’t. Recent studies have shown that sugar is as addictive as cocaine and recommend that it be a controlled substance. After holidays like Halloween, I admit we find ourselves weaning our family from another sugar addiction.
Perhaps rather than feeling like I need to ‘put my foot down’ on another issue of discontent, I could create something positive instead. Something which breathes life and grows community. I long for a halloween where I don’t need to take my children out to ask neighbours for candy. One where we get together for a wagon ride and hot apple cider, enjoy each other’s carved pumpkins, and play old fashioned party games that are now seen as ‘too dangerous,’ like bobbing for apples.
At the very least, it would be nice to be able to pass out something homemade and even (shall I say it?) healthy, without the impending reality of it being thrown out. I wonder which is more safe…eating exorbitant amounts of packaged and processed sugar or chancing it on some homemade goodies while sharing some germs over apple bobbing?
We would love to be part of a halloween vision like that. Count us in!
Perhaps I’ll get things together early enough next year to make this a reality. It sure would be lovely! Consider the intention set…
You are absolutely right about refined sugar being hard on people’s health and this is the very first blog I’ve read that talks about sugar contributing to anxiety issues. Stay away from CATS!!! (Caffeine, Alcohol, Tobacco, and Sugar) The only one I had a problem with was sugar, so we cut way back on that. My wife cooks everything from scratch, so she usually cuts the sugar amount in half from what the recipe calls for.
Our grand kids get real hyped up on sugar, so their parents participate in the program offered by their dentist. The dentist will buy the Halloween candy from the kids. The kids will collect the candy, sell it to their dentist, and buy something they want. win, win.
This Halloween afternoon I was filling potholes in the road when some kids walked by. I told them if they came to our house for “Trick or Treat” they’d likely get a low sugar muffin since my wife was trying to keep our sugar amount down below 9 grams a day. I didn’t get the idea they would come by. 🙂
Love it! I agree about CATS…vile things they are 😉 HAHAH!
I’ve already been thinking about what we’ll hand out next year…I am going to get creative. Last night it was the kids leftover candy from the Canada Day Parade and the local fair parade that I had stuck in the freezer!
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