Easter Ideas That Are Healthy for Kids and Families

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Easter is famous for its candy—jelly beans, marshmallow chicks, marshmallow bunnies, hollow chocolate rabbits, solid chocolate rabbits, chocolate cream eggs, pastel chocolates, and all kinds of candy novelties. Although holidays usually are celebrated with food and tradition, holidays such as Easter, Valentine’s Day, and Halloween often are the most sabotaging to healthful eating. Finding the balance between celebrating and overindulging often is challenging. 

The following are some suggestions to help make Easter a little less daunting to your pursuit of healthfulness.

Items for the Easter basket
Think of items other than candy to put in your Easter baskets, such as:
  • Easter-themed items from a craft store—look for flowers, eggs, hearts, and bunnies made from wood and include some paints or markers in the basket
  • Stickers and sticker books
  • Temporary tattoos
  • Jewelry or beads and string to make your own jewelry
  • Barrettes, hair bands, and nail polish
  • CDs or tapes
  • Small toy cars and other small toys
  • Play dough
  • Disposable cameras
  • Musical instruments
  • Mini planters and seeds
  • New shovels, pails, sand toys to get ready for spring
  • Sunglasses
Family tips
These tips may help make your Easter more healthful:
  • Buy candy treats the day you plan to use them, either to put in an Easter basket or to eat at a celebration. Do not have treats in the home or accessible days beforehand. 
  • Decide on one or two favorite items and purchase only those. Do not buy candy to use as “filler.” That is what the fun grass is for! 
  • While lollipops, marshmallows, hard candy, gummy candy, and jelly candy have fewer calories and little or no fat, they are worse for tooth decay. These foods stay in the mouth longer and lead to more contact between the teeth and have more sugar than other candy. Remember that it is important to regularly brush teeth after exposure to candy and sweets.
  • Make a rule about how much or when children (and adults) can eat the Easter goodies. Can everyone have as much as they want for 1 day, and then the rest gets thrown away or donated? Can everyone have one or two pieces of candy after a meal for 1 week? Figure out what seems reasonable to you and set the ground rules before the big day, so everyone knows what to expect.
General holiday tips
Remember to make healthful eating a priority every day, even at Easter, by following these suggestions:
  • Know which meals will focus on the Easter celebration, and keep the rest of the meals focused on fruits, vegetables, and whole grains
  • Plan your Easter meal so it is exceptional, rather than getting caught up in celebrating Easter with food all week long
  • Make extra eggs to eat when you are making hard-boiled eggs for dyeing—they are healthful and nutritious with only 75 calories in one large egg
  • Help your family celebrate Easter and welcome in spring by enjoying a walk, time at a park, or some physical activity outside to connect with your family and burn off some extra calories

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