by Kathleen Richardson

Created on: May 17, 2009   Last Updated: July 26, 2009

The tradition of Halloween seems to give people the right to eat as much candy as they want. While this holiday only comes round one day a year, bagfuls of treats can last for days or weeks. Belly aches, sugar highs and aching teeth prevail.

A key to maintaining good health during the Halloween season is to establish basic eating guidelines and stick to them.

*Confine treat-or-treating to the immediate neighborhood. That makes it easier to work with neighbors in planning to limit the amount of candy handed out to each child.

*Begin Halloween evening with a healthy meal or snack. Just as adults should never grocery shop on an empty stomach, so kids should never trick-or-treat when hungry. Adults accompanying trick-or-treaters can enforce rules, making sure kids wait until they get home to sort through their treats. Once home for the night, kids can select a few pieces to sample right away, set aside some for the next few days, and then freeze the rest.

*Include bits and pieces of Halloween candies stored in the freezer in future baking projects. Chocolate tastes yummy when thawed, chopped finely and added to homemade baked goods, allowing parents to limit the amount of chocolate being consumed while allowing children their treats.

*As an alternative, skip trick-or-treating altogether and invite neighbors to a Halloween party. Before the party starts, the hosting family can start their healthy eating right at the supper table with Ghoulish Spaghetti. What better way is there to get in the mood for a night of ghosts and goblins than with a filling, nutritious supper.

Serve up individual platefuls of this treat: a large scoop of cooked spaghetti with blood red sauce spread over the top. Two large meatballs (made with lean ground beef or lean ground turkey) strategically placed, and a slice of pimento-stuffed olive pressed into the top of each cooked meatball will create the illusion of huge eyeballs staring out of this entree. Sprinkle on chopped fresh parsley for green hair.

Prepare for a party with healthy Halloween treats...

Everyone enjoys fresh apples. Place clean apples in a pail of water for a game of Bobbing for Apples. Mini apples in a shallow pan, with just an inch or so of water, work best for small children.

As an alternative, scoop the core and seeds out of fresh apples, place the apples in a microwave dish with about 1/4 water. Stuff each apple hole with a spoonful of brown sugar and cinnamon. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and microwave

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