ENJOYING HALLOWEEN WITH DIABETES
Whether it's a Halloween party or trick-or-treating, there are likely to be lots of sweets and chocolate around, and it's important for children (and adults!) to know they don't have to miss out on all that just because they have diabetes.
However, it's important to keep track of what is eaten, and not to eat lots of sugary and fatty foods, as that's not good for anyone – diabetes or no diabetes.
Handy Halloween hints
Here are some tips to help keep things on track at Halloween when your child has diabetes:
Try not to eat all the treats while out and about
If your kids go out trick-or-treating they could already have carrier bags full of sweets by the time they get to the end of the street – encourage children not to eat them while they're out, as it will be difficult to keep a track of how much they've had.
Instead, wait till they get back and encourage them to share the sweets out with their friends. Then they can decide how much they're going to have and they (or you) can make changes to their insulin dose if necessary.
Decide when to have any leftover sweets
Then put them away and out of reach so that your children (or you!) won't be tempted to have 'just one more'.
Encourage kids to be honest about what they've eaten
If you don't go with your kids trick-or-treating, it can be tempting for them to say they only had a few sweets when really they've had a lot, which could lead to confusing rises in blood glucose levels.
Explain to kids that it's far better to be honest about how much they've had, so you can help them decide how much insulin they'll need to bring their diabetes back under control.
Test blood glucose levels
If your children think their levels will be high it's tempting not to test, but remind them that if they don't test then they won't know what to do to get back on track – and this might make them feel poorly.
Don't think sweets can take the place of a proper meal
Kids will still need some starchy carbohydrates (like bread, pasta, chapatti or rice) to give them long-lasting energy.
Be prepared for hypos
On the flip side, activity can make blood glucose levels drop, so if a Halloween party involves a lot of running around or they're doing a lot of trick-or-treating, your child might have a hypo. So make sure they have something with them to treat a hypo with.
It's quite likely that they will, with all those sweets they've collected, have something suitable to treat a hypo, but remember that chocolate isn't that great to treat hypos as it doesn't work very quickly. And unless they're on a pump, your child may need a follow-on snack like a cereal bar or a piece of fruit.
Five a day
Remember it's important to have five pieces of fruit or veg a day – so get kids to brush up on their apple bobbing!
Avoid diabetic sweets
Don't have (or give) diabetic sweets or chocolate. People might think they're being nice by providing this, but it will still affect blood glucose levels and might cause the runs!
And it'll be more expensive.
Extra tips for Halloween parties
- Even though it's fine to have some sweet things, make sure your child has some starchy carbohydrate (like sandwiches, crisps, chips, pasta or potato wedges) as well so they don't go hypo.
- Check that any drinks at the party are sugar free. Lots of children drink sugar-free squash and fizzy drinks anyway, so it might not be a problem, but you might want to take some of your own just in case.
- Ask when your child's going to be eating – if it's a lot later than usual they might need to have a little snack before they go to make sure they don't go hypo.
Keeping safe
- Make sure your child tells your friends about their diabetes, and that the adults with them know about it too, especially what to do if they have a hypo.
- Give the accompanying adults your contact number in case of any problems.
- Don't let kids go trick-or-treating on their own.
- Encourage your child to think about who they're trick-or-treating – remind them that some people might find it really annoying or frightening. It's often worth you checking out which of your neighbours are OK with it and which aren't before letting your child go trick-or-treating.
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