Halloween Opt-Out: Part 1

2015
Last year I wrote a blog about my feelings about Halloween. I didn't post it because I know how some of my friends adore Halloween, look forward to it all year, put much thought and energy into their costumes, etc. and didn't want to alienate them. This year, however, I have come across more and more people with thoughts and feelings similar to mine who have requested to read what I wrote. For this reason, I have decided to share. I hope that no one will feel negatively judged and keep in mind that offense can only be taken, not given. Perhaps it will even encourage others who have had similar feelings, but were afraid to share.

2014

Just so you are aware: if you ever order from Oriental Trading Company, you will forever receive a bajillion Oriental Trading Company catalogs. As I flipped through the latest catalog to grace my mailbox, I thought at first that it was just a Halloween issue. But upon closer examination, I realized that the pumpkins had smiley faces or a cross and said things like “Jesus is my light” and “Let His light shine”. It was a whole catalog of Christian alternatives to traditional Halloween celebrations. I didn't know there even was such a thing! “What an idea,” I thought. I did some more research. Turns out a lot of Christian groups have fall celebrations or another celebration centered around Christ instead of a Halloween celebration centered around...what? Ghosts, witches and candy at best? Hmm, I started wondering what my family's October was centered around.

What my research unveiled: Some churches have Harvest Celebrations that celebrate the bounty of the season. Some churches have carnivals that give the kids the opportunity to dress up, but instead of aspiring to look like a favorite cartoon character or something ghoulish, they pick a favorite scriptural or historical character. Some families make their own home-based traditions, such as carving pumpkins, playing games, making doughnuts, etc.

2015
And some choose to celebrate the Christian Restoration that happens to have significant events on October 31^st. (More on that later.)

2014

Let's go back a decade or so...I used to be a Halloween lover. Over time, I have acquired some cool and spooky décor, a history of fun and creative trunk-or-treat themes, and a pretty cool vampire costume – complete with a real cape, red contacts, fangs, etc. I probably trick-or-treated past the age when it was appropriate or cool. I've been to my share of haunted houses, haunted forests, haunted hospitals, etc. And in high school, my friends and I looked forward to scaring the bejeebees out of people at the haunted forest in the McArthur's back yard. It. Was. Awesome.

So why am I even thinking about Halloween alternatives? Because I'm now an old fogie? Well, maybe. But no...one word – KIDS. Not the ones that come a knockin' – the ones that I birthed. Here are a few of my thoughts that have changed since becoming responsible for other human beings.

#1. Sugar – Now before you roll your eyes, let me tell you about sugar at our house. It's a struggle. It's a lot like cigarettes.

2015
Casey Seidenberg co-founder of Nourish Schools, a D.C.-based nutrition education company writes:

Sugar has been shown to have an effect similar to an addictive drug, triggering you to want and need more, and making it hard to give up.

Sugar was brought to Europe in the 1100s as a precious drug, known for its “tremendous addictive potential,” and was called “crack” during that time in France, says psychotherapist Julia Ross in her book “Mood Cure.” Quickly removing refined sugar from a diet can cause withdrawl symptoms like those with a drug: fatigue, depression, headaches and achy limbs.

Studies have also shown that overconsumption of sugar can alter our taste buds so you begin craving sweeter and sweeter foods leaving the more natural sweetness of fruits or whole foods less flavorful. (Article “Teach Your Kids About Sugar” printed in HEALTH Southwest Utah Public Health Foundation Fall 2015 - From the Washington Post, May 13, 2015)

By now everyone in the industrialized world knows it's terrible for you, but, like cigarettes, so many people still use it...A LOT. This year alone in the US, we will consume around 10.5 million metric tons of sugar. Million, tons! So what does that mean? Well, to put it in a historical context:

• In 1700, the average person consumed about 4 pounds of sugar per year.
  
• In 1800, the average person consumed about 18 pounds of sugar per year.
  
• In 1900, individual consumption had risen to 90 pounds of sugar per year.
  
• In 2009, more than 50 percent Americans consume 1/2 pound of sugar per day, which is 180 pounds of sugar per year.

In 1893, there were fewer than 3 diabetes per 100,000 people in US. Today, there are 8,000 diabetes per 100,000 people in US.

Great, so we all know it's bad for us. Yet for some reason, as a cultural whole, we shove it in kids' faces every chance we get. Have a birthday? Eat some cake! (And don't forget your treat bag to take home!) Visit an elderly relative? Have a cookie! Want to stay quiet during church? Have some fruit snacks! Do good at the doctor? Have a sucker! In fact, do well at anything? Have a (insert sugary treat here)! Celebrating any holiday? Eat candy, cookies, hot chocolate, cupcakes, doughnuts, chocolates, etc. (Think about it...Valentine's Day, Easter, Halloween, Christmas...been to a 4^th of July parade lately where they're not literally throwing candy at you?)

2014

August of last year, National Geographic Magazine ran an article about sugar. The cover of the magazine looked good enough to eat. I was sure it was going to say “Eh, sugar. Not so bad. Eat up!” But in fact, it was fascinatingly anti-sugar. It detailed where sugar came from and how it vastly contributed to slavery. I had no idea. You can read it here http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2013/08/sugar/cohen-text You should read it.

Last year (2013) I decided not to make candy a big part of our Halloween. Our church is big on the tradition of trunk-or-treats. I remember it popping up in the early nineties as a safer alternative to trick-or-treating. (Remember when there were scares about razor blades in apples or some such? Creepy!) Although, in our neighborhood, everyone goes out trick-or-treating anyway, so really we just end up handing out candy to a lot of kids twice... But I digress. Church – They also have a soup or chili potluck before hand, which I enjoy. So we went to support our church and fellowship with neighbors. However, not wanting to proliferate the sugar issue, I decided to hand out small treats of a non-edible nature (toys, stickers, temporary tattoos, etc.) [Thus the Oriental Trading Company order.] The boys stayed with me and helped me hand out the toys for the most part, and we got through Halloween with a minimal amount of sugar intake.

I was recently talking to a friend about my ponderances on Halloween. I have long admired her knowledge and actions in leading a healthy lifestyle. She feels that it is not coincidental that “cold and flu season” arrive in conjunction with sugar season (if there is such a thing anymore).

2015

Casey notes “Sugar has also been shown to suppress our immune system by lowering the ability of our white blood cells to engulf bacteria, which can lead to more colds and other sicknesses.

More than just physically, I believe what we put into our bodies affects us spiritually.

I remember an incident in my home growing up when my mother’s sensitive spirit was affected by a physical indulgence. She had experimented with a new sweet roll recipe. They were big and rich and yummy—and very filling. Even my teenage brothers couldn’t eat more than one. That night at family prayer my father called upon Mom to pray. She buried her head and didn’t respond. He gently prodded her, “Is something wrong?” Finally she said, “I don’t feel very spiritual tonight. I just ate three of those rich sweet rolls.” I suppose that many of us have similarly offended our spirits at times by physical indulgences. Especially substances forbidden in the Word of Wisdom have a harmful effect on our bodies and a numbing influence on our spiritual sensitivities. None of us can ignore this connection of our spirits and bodies.

The restored gospel teaches that there is an intimate link between body, mind, and spirit. In the Word of Wisdom, for example, the spiritual and physical are intertwined. When we follow the Lord’s law of health for our bodies, we are also promised wisdom to our spirits and knowledge to our minds (see D&C 89:19–21). The spiritual and physical truly are linked.

Susan W. Tanner, former Young Women general president, “The Sanctity of the Body,” Ensign, Nov. 2005, 15. https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2005/10/the-sanctity-of-the-body?lang=eng

(A couple of other insightful & interesting LDS articles relating to sugar https://www.lds.org/ensign/2014/02/nourishing-our-bodies-and-our-spirits?lang=eng & https://www.lds.org/ensign/1975/10/dont-eat-your-heart-out?lang=eng&query=over+eat+affects+spirit https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/phyllis-c-jacobson_dance-supreme-physical-manifestation-inner-convictions/ & https://www.lds.org/friend/2https://www.lds.org/ensign/1974/07/discovery?lang=eng015/06/the-candy-challenge?lang=eng & https://www.lds.org/ensign/1974/07/discovery?lang=eng & https://www.lds.org/ensign/1988/06/research-and-perspectives?lang=eng & https://www.lds.org/ensign/1990/09/keeping-mentally-well?lang=eng )

What a spiritually sensitive woman to realize that what she ate was what affected her spirit! Consider, then, what eating a pillowcase full of candy must do to our sensitive, young ones' spirits? I've seen myself how my children's attitudes, bad habits, etc. are affected when they eat refined sugar.

My sister seems to be similar to the mother in Tanner's article. In recent years, she has become more and more sensitive to negative spiritual effects that sugar has on her and her family. She finds it disturbing that so many times at church, her kids are given sugar by those very teachers and leaders who should be teaching them about this physical/spiritual connection.

Fact: Utah is the nation's sweet-tooth capital. We buy more candy than any other state! While many Utahns abstain from alcohol, coffee, tea, and tobacco; candy and sweets are a frequent indulgence, distributed freely in schools, church events, and at home.

2014

This Sunday our Stake President, a doctor, gave a fireside in which he talked about our body being our “first estate” or gift from God. He said “Imagine that someone gave you a $150,000 Ferrari. Would you give a kid a magic marker and tell them to go to town on it? What about pour sugar water in the gas tank? Of course not! Our bodies are infinitely more precious than a sports car.” (He also brought up the point that, unlike cars, we each only get one body.)

2015

Conclusion: my Halloween hold-out stemed from my desire to stay away from sugar, but the more I thought/observed about the holiday, the more reasons I found to opt out.

Part 2 to follow...