Helpful hints on preventing your kids from gorging on Halloween candy

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Halloween is less than two weeks away and that means kids everywhere are getting ready to gorge themselves on candy.

It won’t be long until your kids head out trick-or-treating to fill their bags with miniature chocolate bars and other sugary snacks.

“There is tremendous candy overload on Halloween,” says Sasha Emmons, the editor of Today’s Parent magazine.

But letting the kids have free reign over their sugary stash may not be the best course of action.

Emmons says there are ways of avoiding that overload. “Serve a dinner that you know that they will eat that is at least semi-healthy. Cook something that you know they will have a good portion of,” says Emmons.

“With a full, sated belly, they’re a little less-likely to go whole-hog on the candy.”

Of course if they come home with an unforeseen amount of loot, there’s always bribery.

“If you just get way too much candy, you can buy the candy off of them and then maybe bring it to the office or do something to get rid of it.” says Emmons, who has used the trick with her own kids.

“Say it’s five cents a candy or something like that. They might be willing to part with that candy for five cents, that way they’re not eating hundreds of pieces of candy.”

Because no matter what you think, she says money is money.

“Five cents is a lot of money if you’re a little kid.”