Halloween Safety Tips 2017

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Here are some tips from the Chatham-Kent Police Service!

The Chatham-Kent Police Service would like to offer the following tips to ensure a fun but safe Hallowen’en night for everyone here in our community while out trick-or-treating:

• Before leaving the house, parents should give their children a flashlight to carry

• Glow sticks may also be used as part of a costume to provide extra visibility

• Costumes should fit the child properly. Make sure masks do not impede visibility and that long costumes do not pose a tripping hazard

• Footwear is also crucial. It’s better to choose practical footwear that doesn’t match the costume than to wear potentially dangerous shoes that look good

• Children should always go trick-or-treating with a responsible adult

• If older children go out as a group, please remind them to stay together and set a time for them to return home

• Make sure children are crossing the street safely. Cross at marked intersections and look both ways before crossing to ensure that all vehicles are obeying the traffic signals

• Ensure children are walking from house to house and not running

• Trick-or-treat at houses where you know the homeowners

• Children should not accept – and especially not eat – anything that isn’t commercially wrapped

Here is some information from the Chatham-Kent Public Health Unit!

Halloween is a fun and spooky time of year for both children and adults. However, the excitement of Halloween shouldn’t make us forget about food safety.

The following tips from Health Canada will help make Halloween an enjoyable experience for everyone.

Before trick-or-treating

– Remind children not to eat any of their collected goodies while out trick-or-treating, until they are inspected by an adult.

– Remind children not to accept and especially not to eat homemade candy or baked goods by people they don’t know.

– Give children a snack or light dinner before they go out to help prevent them from munching while trick-or-treating.

– Don’t send them out on an empty stomach!

After trick-or-treating

– Throw away homemade candy or baked goods.

– Check all commercially wrapped treats.

– Throw out any treats that are not wrapped, those in torn or loose packages, or those that have small holes in the wrappers.

– Be cautious before giving young children treats that could be potential choking hazards, such as chewy candies, gum, hard candies, lollipops, peanuts, small toys or mini-cup jelly products. Depending on the size, shape, consistency and composition, mini-cup jelly products may become lodged in the throat and may be difficult to remove.

– Wash fresh fruit thoroughly. Inspect it for holes, including small punctures, and if found, do not let children or adults eat the fruit.

– Remember, when in doubt, throw it out!

For more information on children with allergies or Halloween parties and food safety.

Check out the following link from Health Canada:

http://healthycanadians.gc.ca/eating-nutrition/safety-salubrite/halloween-eng.php