Everyone loves to dress up and transform themselves into something or someone else on Halloween. Unfortunately they can’t transform into someone that no longer has food sensitivities. If you and your children have food allergies and intolerances your main concern for trick or treating is no longer them tripping over their costume. You have to be vigilant on Halloween so or you could turn into the pirate that plunders their treats.
So what do you do? You can’t ignore the holiday. Do you tell your kids, sorry you’re not celebrating Halloween this year? That would be even scarier. Here’s how to keep the booty safe.
Find out from your kids what they like the best about Halloween.
- If it’s knocking on doors with their friends, then let them go and go with them. At the end of the evening take the bags of candy collected to a local shelter for the homeless or battered women and children. Your kids get the treat of giving. Their reward is a bag full of candy they can have according to their needs.
- If it’s only eating candy that excites them then have some friends over and only have the “safe” candy they can tolerate. Have a piñata or just a bowl. Have them help you make those gluten free cookies or soy free rice crispy treats. The treat will be not getting sick.
- Most importantly arm yourself with lots of information: There are many articles on great blogs about this very topic. Gluten-free candy lists, dairy free Halloween, the list goes on and on. The best source for this information I found was on the Sure Foods Living blog. They have a great post on how to navigate the candy bags. Check out the long list or the quick list. They also had a food allergy blog carnival with many entries from different sources and new information on Gimbals Candies.
Please keep in mind that manufactures can change how they produce their products without changing the labels so when in doubt, call them directly.
Be proactive and Halloween won’t be so scary. If you are trying new things this Halloween because you no longer eat sugar or gluten or something else, please leave a comment and share your tips so all can benefit.
My fiance claims to be allergic to nuts, which is like hitting the jackpot for me because I'm a nut fiend. So our solution is simple: I get fat.
Bridget,
Thank you for your comment. Hope that works out for you two. –Diane
This is great advice. Thank you for posting this. My son is 3 years old and has gotten so excited this year about decorations and pumpkins, hayrides, etc. He will go trick or treating but will not be eating the candy he collects, instead he likes to count them and organize them into piles! We will be donating our candy. Thanks for your great blog…we absolutely love it!!
Fettya,
I think I finally have figured out how to thank people for leaving a comment. So Thank you! Hope Halloween was fun and safe! –Diane
I worry about this holiday every year as my daughter gets older and starts to understand what its all about. She has multiple food allergies (soy, gluten and dairy are the big ones). This year I prepared her in advance about trick-or-treating and how there probably wasn't going to be things in her bag she could eat, but she could trade them in for safe things when we got home. I had gotten some Surf gummy bears, which she traded her bag of candy in for 3 gummy bears, never asking or mentioning it since 🙂
Julie-
I hope Halloween was fun and safe for everyone! Thanks for your comments. –Diane