Halloween Safety Tips

Halloween is one of the most exciting nights of the year for kids. For many parents, however, the fun can be accompanied by stress and anxiety for the safety of their children. This year, we want to help by offering some easy and effective safety tips for Halloween that will make this holiday a fun-filled and safe Halloween for the entire family.

Costumes

• Plan costumes that are bright and reflective: Consider adding reflective tape or striping costumes and trick-or-treat bags for great visibility.
• Make sure that costume fits well: Costumes should not be short as they can cause tripping, and entanglement and can even meet flame.
• Flame Resistant: Make sure that wigs and accessories are flame resistant and they should also clearly indicate this.
• Non-Toxic Makeup: Makeup should be tested ahead of time on a small patch of your or your child’s skin to ensure that there are no unpleasant surprises or allergic reactions on Halloween.
• Hats: Hats should fit properly so that they won’t slide over and cover your vision, especially during the night.
• Avoid sharp swords, canes, or sticks as accessories: Your child can easily be hurt by these accessories if he or she stumbles or trips.
• Be careful when using decorative contact lenses: Getting decorative contact lenses, without a prescription is both dangerous and illegal. This can cause serious eye issues, that may lead to permanent vision loss.

Pumpkins

• Never allow small children to carve pumpkins: Children can use markers to draw faces on the pumpkin, and then the parents can do the cutting. It is recommended that adults use a small pumpkin saw to carve the pumpkins. It is also important that the pumpkin is carved in small strokes while directing the blade away from yourself and others.
• Use flashlight/glowstick: Using a flashlight or glowstick to light carved pumpkins are much safer compared to using candles. F you do use a candle, a votive candle is the safest.
• Placement of candlelit pumpkins: Do not place candlelit pumpkins on a porch or any path where visitors may pass close by. They should never be left unattended.

At Home

• Tripping Hazards: Remove tripping hazards to keep your home safe for visiting trick-or-treaters. Keep the porch and front yard clear of anything a child could trip over such as garden hoses, toys, bikes, and lawn decorations.
• Outdoor Lights: Check outdoor lights and replace burned-out bulbs.
• Wet Leaves: Sweep wet leaves from sidewalks and steps to prevent injuries caused by slipping.
• Pets: Restrain pets so they do not jump on or bite a trick-or-treater.

When trick-or-treating

• Always accompany children: An adult must always accompany younger children during the neighborhood rounds. If your older children are going alone, plan and review the route that is acceptable to you. If Halloween doesn’t start until after dark where you live and you have younger children, check with your town or park district for Halloween offered activities offered earlier in the day.
• Porch Light rule: Only go to homes with a porch light on and ideally a well-lit pathway.
• Emergency: Review with children how to call 9-1-1 if they ever have an emergency or become lost or are prone to wander.

Healthy Halloween

• Diet before trick-or-treating: Give your child a good meal before parties and trick-or-treating; this will discourage filling up on Halloween treats.
• Non-Edible treats: Consider offering non-edible goodies to trick-or-treaters visiting your home. Halloween is one of the trickiest days of the year for children with food allergies. Instead of treats, other items such as glow sticks, spider rings, vampire fangs, pencils, bubbles, bouncy balls, finger puppets, whistles, bookmarks, stickers, and stencils can be offered to children.
• Be aware of what your child is eating: Keep an eye on what your child always has in their mouth. Wait until the children are home to sort and check treats. Though tampering is rare, it can happen.
• Ration Treats: Try to ration treats for the days and weeks following Halloween. If you keep candy guidelines realistic, consistent and positive, your Halloween is less likely to be about arguing or controlling candy.

Sources:

healthychildren.org, Halloween Health & Safety Tips

nsc.org, Simple Steps for an Extra Safe Halloween

safekids.org, Halloween Safety