Have you heard of the Switch Witch? She is a favorite in our house! We love to dress up and go Trick or Treat, see all of the fun decorations and be out and about… but we don’t really feel like the candy is great for our household. Sugar, food dyes, and just lots of processed STUFF – and let's be honest… aren’t you usually still finding Halloween candy around the house 6 months later?
A few years ago, a friend mentioned that her family was visited by the Switch Witch the day after Halloween, I was intrigued and started asking more questions. So here is the gist… the kids go Trick or Treating, they bring home all of the goodies – they pick a treat they would like to eat, they enjoy it and then leave the rest out for the Switch Witch to come over night. Now, lets be realistic… the Switch Witch doesn’t always make all of her stops the night after Halloween, sometimes she comes during the day while they are at school or even the next night but she comes within a day or two.
When the Switch Witch comes, she takes all of the candy and leaves a small toy. At our house that typically means a Lego set of some kind. Now, I know you are thinking that seems crazy and why not just let them have the candy? For us, our kids don’t really eat much candy and they prefer the treats that they get (pretty regularly) that are less processed, less sugar and don’t contain food dyes. They enjoy the treat they get on Halloween night but also really look forward to the Switch Witch, they usually start saving the things they get from random places at the beginning of October and they have quite a collection for her by Halloween.
Another thing to consider: sugar has been shown to lower the immune system. I ask you to take a moment to think about when the majority of illnesses occur – typically around the late fall (Halloween) through right around Easter. So, what things are we typically eating through this time period? Lots of sweets with all of the holidays AND not getting much outside time or sun light as it is winter.
We choose to make a different choice, that works really well for our family. Our kids get to go out and have lots of fun and be kids but we as a family also don’t have the sugary, processed temptations lying around the house staring at us for months! So, is the Switch Witch going to be visiting your house?
- Karly Baughn, Functional Nutritional Therapy Practitioner