Editor's note: This is a guest post from Kimberly, The Food Allergy Mom
As the fall holidays approach,
parents of children with food allergies collectively cringe at the food-related
challenges they bring. After all, both
Halloween and Thanksgiving are completely centered around food!
Still, if
you’ve visited my blog, The
Food Allergy Mom, you know I don’t believe in letting food allergies define
our kids. Kids deserve to be kids…no
matter what.
Halloween is a little more than a month away and it’s time to start thinking about how you can safely
capture the magical fun and food of the holiday.
Before I break
down the different ways to safely celebrate the day, there is one cardinal rule
to remember. Foods and candy that are normally considered “safe foods” are not
necessarily safe at Halloween.
Many popular
candies and treats can have altered ingredients or are processed on equipment
that also processes a known allergen. Many
of these changes are due to special packaging and festive appearances of brand
name products. Never let your
child consume food or candy that is individually packaged unless you checked
the ingredients and warning labels of the larger bag it came in. Ingredients and warnings are required to be
labeled on the exterior of the product, but not necessarily on its individual
components.
Now that you
know what not to do, how can you safely celebrate Halloween with the
family? Here are few frightfully
delightful ideas:
The Candy Swap: Older children or children with very mild
food allergies (not requiring epinephrine), may be able to safely trick-or-treat
around the neighborhood if the ground rules are laid out beforehand. The most important rule is for kiddos not put
anything in their mouths! Accompany your
child from house to house allowing them to collect candy with friends. When done trick or treating for the night,
let your child swap out the candy they collected for safe candy (candy you
personally bought and approved) or a non-food prize.
Selective Trick- or-Treating: If you have family or other food allergy
friends in the area, take your child to trick-or-treat only at those “safe”
houses. This may require driving around
the neighborhood rather than walking but is still just as much fun when in
costume! Make sure the treats served are
truly safe by providing friends with an approved list of treats ahead of time
and then double-checking the ingredients again before your child consumes them.
Pumpkin Party: Halloween parties are usually a high-risk
zone for those with food allergies and require extra care. Even if you are the host or hostess for the
party and are providing allergy-friendly food for friends, a well-meaning guest
usually shows with a special dish they think
is allergy-free.
If you do
decide to host a Halloween party, consider making it a non-food party or make
sure your children know to eat only the food you personally place on their
plates. If you are attending a Halloween
party, bring an allergy-friendly dish.
It is a great idea to bring extras of the allergy-friendly dish in your
purse to provide your child with so there is no chance for cross contamination
or look-alike mix-ups.
Falling For Fall: Another option is to avoid food all together
by enjoying the simple pleasures Halloween has to offer. Load the family in the car and head out to a
local pumpkin patch. Enjoy the fall
weather and take your time picking out the perfect pumpkin before enjoying a
picnic. Some pumpkin patches even host a
festival on the weekends with lots of food-free activities such as carnival
games, hay rides, and costume contests.
Whatever you do this Halloween,
make it a safe and boo-tiful experience for you and your family!
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