Halloween is full of fun and tradition for kids and adults alike. However, it is often full of sugar, artificial ingredients and food dyes. Many parents are standing up this year and choosing a "Green Halloween" for their children. 

You can always offer non-candy treats to trick-or-treaters. Think outside the box - mini bags of popcorn, pretzels or cheese crackers are usually much appreciated by other parents whose kids are being bombarded with sugary treats.

What to do with all the candy your kids receive? Have your kids trade in their candy for other items. Check out the dollar spot at your local Target or party store for things like pencils, yo-yos, play-doh, stickers, cars, play jewelry, bouncy balls, lip balm, or playing cards, and stock up before Halloween. In our house, we use a ticket system like Chuck E Cheese - the kids give me their "yucky" candy and they each get a number of "tickets" to redeem for prizes. There's no way I'm going to let them eat all the candy in the first place, so they're happy to give it up for things with which they can play. 

By no means am I saying Halloween shouldn't include candy! There are many great options out there for all-natural candies your kids are sure to love. How can I be sure, you ask? Two companies were kind enough to let me sample some of their offerings and they were met with rave reviews from my kids and their friends.

Surf Sweets makes 7 varieties of organic and natural candies: gummy bears, gummy worms, organic jelly beans, sour worms, organic fruity bears, gummy swirls and sour berry bears. Our taste testers reported the gummy worms to be the best they've ever tasted! The sour berry bears were a crowd pleaser as well. All Surf Sweets candy is produced and packaged in a dedicated nut-free facility. Their candies are gluten, casein free and contain none of the most common food allergens.  One thing that makes Surf Sweets very unique is that they are one of the only candies without corn syrup. They are sweetened with organic fruit juice and as an added bonus they provide 100% of the RDA of Vitamin C. Surf Sweets products are currently available at natural foods stores and mainstream grocery stores such as Whole Foods in Naperville, IL. Surf Sweets are also available at select Toys R Us and Buy Buy Baby stores.

YummyEarth was another hit with the kids (and adults!) Their gummy bears came in unique flavors of strawberry, sour apple and pomegranate. They were just as chewy and sweet as their mainstream counterparts, but contain no artificial ingredients. Their candy drops and suckers were also a real treat with flavors like pomegranate, watermelon, mango and blueberry, to name just a few. Founded by two dads who couldn’t find great tasting treats for their kids that weren’t filled with corn syrup and artificial stuff, YummyEarth organic candy is 100% all natural, made with real fruit extracts and planet friendly ingredients. Phil Lempert, the Today Show’s famed Food Critic, refers to YummyEarth as “the best lollipop I’ve ever tasted.”   If you're interested in trying their products, you can find trick-or-treat packages of individual bags of gummy bears and huge bags of suckers locally at Whole Foods or order online with the discount created just for Examiner readers. Use code EXAMINER  at www.yummyearth.com to receive 20% off any order of $25 or more through November 28th. 

Another great source for natural Halloween treats is Trader Joes. Check out their "fun size" chocolate bars, which contain no vanillin unlike most popular chocolate bars. They also offer mouth-watering organic lollipops and Halloween themed gummies. 

Thanks to the companies mentioned above, it is possible for kids and moms alike to enjoy Halloween without worrying about the "scary" ingredients in the candy they receive.