It’s that time of year again, where all those smiley orange faces appear on everyone’s front doorsteps, kids roam the streets yelling “trick or treat” and big food corporations seize the opportunity to make yet more profits simultaneously damaging your health while lining their pockets with promotional ‘Halloween goodies’
Halloween is one of the biggest holidays for big food along with valentine’s day, Christmas and more… these companies hijack the holiday fun abuse in order to persuade you to consume sugar-laden festive ‘food’!
OREOS cookies is a perfect example of a food company that Hijacks Halloween to promote incredibly unhealthy Halloween-themed cookies that won’t do any good for your health. The Halloween edition of the cookies have double the amount of orange filling instead of the normal white filling.
What is in the Oreo cookie you ask? The website says the Halloween Oreo Cookie is always made with real cocoa, and the orange coloured creme has the same taste!
The Chocolate sandwich cookies. Per 2 cookies: 140 Calories. 2g Sat fat, 10% DV. 85mg Sodium, 4% DV. 13g Sugars. Net Wt. 1 lb 4 oz (566g). Ingredients: Sugar, Unbleached Enriched Flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate {Vitamin B1}, Riboflavin {Vitamin B2}, Folic Acid), Palm and/or Canola Oil, Cocoa (Processed with Alkali), High Fructose Corn Syrup, Leavening (Baking Soda and/or Calcium Phosphate), Salt, Soy Lecithin, Yellow 6 Lake, Chocolate, Artificial Flavour, Yellow 5 Lake.
If you don’t recognise most of the ingredients in there it is because it is an ultra-processed food, guaranteed (just like smoking) to destroy your health in the long term. This cookie is packed with various different sugars, which may make it taste delicious (in fact addictive), but it will not satisfy your hunger. Quite the reverse: it will cause huge sugar spikes leading to even more insatiable cravings. This cookie is “poison with added calories” and not Real Food!
Companies like OREOS explain why an average 4-to 8-year-old consumes about 50 (yes FIFTY!) pounds of sugar annually. As a result of the toxins and added sugars in junk foods like OREOS, kids’ microbiome health, neurotransmitter function, and immune systems are weakened. This puts them at a higher risk of obesity, diabetes, and fatty liver (to name but a few ) diseases later in life.
There is nothing less healthful than artificial sweeteners, food dyes, and Frankenstein-like preservatives. Most of the Halloween candy contains high fructose corn syrup, which disrupts the body’s chemical messengers, leading to increased cravings and over eating.
Despite knowing that excess sugar and processed candy aren’t what we really want our kids to eat, we also know that denying our kids something leads to them wanting the forbidden fruit (or candy) even more. Of course it isn’t always possible for you to monitor your kids’ eating habits to make sure they are always making healthy food choices.
So, how can you teach your kids to enjoy the holiday season healthfully without them going crazy with candy?
It's Not Scary to Limit Sugar
It is amazing how perceptive kids can be. The way adults talk about food will have at least some influence on their attitude toward food.
The best way to teach your child mindful eating practices isn’t to label food as “good” or “bad.” By doing so, you are attaching value to the food itself instead of the feelings associated with eating it. Consequently, children tend to binge on “restricted” foods and become frustrated with their parents.
'Wording' is imperative with an obsession.
For example, if your child complains that they have tummy aches after eating too much on Halloween, it’s helpful to understand how they feel after eating the food. “Yes, you had some treats today, and sometimes having too many makes you feel sick.”
By doing this, you are reinforcing mindful eating practices by having your child pay attention to how food makes them feel, instead of whether or not they should eat it.
Yogurt, for example, can contain up to 20 grams (4 teaspoonfuls) of sugar per serving, but since adults don’t restrict or negatively talk about yogurts, they way the do about candy, children don’t obsess over it. (So avoid low fat, processed yoghurts with added flavours and opt instead for the natural, full-fat varieties)
Creating healthy relationships with food while also reducing sugar intake is the ultimate goal of teaching your children to make decisions about quality food when you aren’t present.
Halloween is a gateway to food addiction
Food addiction is a very common but unrecognised problem. It occurs when a person becomes addicted to food, especially processed junk foods (high in sugar and carbs). Eating these foods can cause you to become insatiable – For example: There will be a quick spike in your blood sugar from eating junk foods high in refined carbohydrates and added sugars will cause a surge in insulin, leading to a quick drop in blood sugar. That leaves you feeling tired, cranky and hungry for more. Rinse and Repeat!
Halloween can be the entry point to food addiction for our youngest and most vulnerable. By overindulging in sugary treats we are opening them up to Diabetes, Heart Disease, Cancer, Dementia & More in later life.
Sugar will negatively impact your child’s life
A close relationship with sugar early in life will negatively affect your child’s microbiome (gut) health and neurological and immune function.
It is well known that sugar is a common denominator for many neurological disorders, such as ADHD and sensory processing disorder. In addition to complicating emotional regulation, sugar creates an unstable source of energy for the brain.
By competing for space within cells with vitamin C, sugar negatively impacts immunity. As a result, too much sugar impedes vitamin C’s ability to work within the immune system. Without vitamin C, our immune cells cannot function properly, making us more susceptible to infection.
How can I protect my child’s health?
Protecting your child’s health may seem impossible around the Halloween season but it is actually quite simple. Follow these tips to boost immunity and avoid future diabetes for you kids.
• Eat Real Food. You’ll be getting all the nutrients you need from your diet and won’t be permanently hungry
• Try low-sugar recipes from dietdoctor.com
• Prioritise sleep
• Walk more!!
Halloween is still doable; you can still have all the fun without the damage to your health. Remember the only spooky thing is diabetes and the holiday sugar-rush simply isn’t worth it in the long-term
To learn more about how to optimise your health, please book a free 15-minute consultation with the founder of ProLongevity, Graham Phillips. Its free, there’s no pressure and it could save your life!