6 Ways to make trick-or-treating with food allergies simpler

Parents of kids with food allergies often panic and dread Halloween. As kids it becomes hard to not send them out for trick-or-treating. Trick-or-treating exposes them to food allergens that are present in candy.

However with a lot of planning and educating ahead of the actual Halloween celebrations you can actually enjoy a safe trick-or-treating for your kids.

Here are a few tips that will help in enjoying a safe Halloween:

• Do not allow them to eat till they are home

Tell your child to wait till she is home to eat any of the treats she gets. After you have sorted through them, let her eat treats that are safe for her and don’t contain any allergens.

It is best to avoid homemade treats unless you are sure of the ingredients.

• Talk to your friends, neighbors and family

Inform everyone about your child’s food allergies beforehand so that they do not hand out food stuff that might cause a negative allergic reaction in your child.

You can even hand out alternative things to give your child when she comes trick-or-treating.

• Read labels

You have to go through every packaged food label to see if they are free from common food allergens or specific ones that include egg, peanuts, soy, nuts and others.

Some candy that is handed out might be in mini pack that does not contain all the printed details as present on the regular pack.

If in doubt, do not allow your child to consume. It is better to be safe than sorry.

• Keep alternate gifts or pries other than food and candy

Your child will come home with bags full of candy. If you have to take their candy away because of the fact that they might contain allergens you might want to keep alternative gifts or pries or safe treats for them so that they don’t feel dejected about their treats being confiscated by you.

• Consider a non-food related Halloween party

Some parents rather have safe fun by avoiding trick-or-treating altogether and avoid all the tension and probable disasters that could happen.

Have a party which involves allergen free food, games, scavenger hunt, camp fire that involves narrating ghost stories etc….

• Keep your self-injectable epinephrine and a fully charged phone for trick-or-treating emergencies

Always be prepared. You never know when you might face a dreaded allergy reaction situation.

These tips should help you get through this holiday safely. For more tips you can consult your pediatrician.