With Halloween quickly approaching, it’s important for parents to remember that while the holiday is fun for both kids and adults, children can be exposed to unique dangers on this day—especially when they’re trick-or-treating.
To help your kids and other children in your neighborhood stay safe on Halloween, do your best to follow these tips:
- Drive cautiously through residential areas on Halloween and the days preceding it.
Most drivers expect to encounter large groups of pedestrians on Halloween, but it’s important to remember that some neighborhoods and downtown areas hold trick-or-treat nights during the week preceding Halloween. As the calendar gets closer to Oct. 31, make sure you stay extra cautious when driving through neighborhoods or areas where small children may be walking. - Accompany your children while they walk from home to home.
Even if your kids have experience walking on their own, such as to and from school, it’s important to supervise them on Halloween. Costumes can limit their ability to see oncoming vehicles, and the excitement of trick-or-treating can cause them to cross the road without looking or without using a crosswalk. While supervising your children, make sure they stay close to you and carefully supervise them as they cross the street. - Remove potential trip and fall hazards from your walkway and porch.
Cars aren’t the only hazards that kids face when their visibility is limited due to costumes and masks. They also may be at risk of tripping and falling due to objects in their paths—especially if their costumes hinder their movement in any way. During the week leading up to Halloween, make sure you clear your sidewalks, walkways, driveway, and porch of any objects that could potentially cause your children or other children to trip and fall as they make their way from house to house. - Avoid buying colored contacts and test Halloween makeup and theatrical blood.
Decorative and colored contact lenses can create a dramatic look when paired with Halloween costumes, but they can also cause eye infections, eye irritation, scratched corneas, and other serious disorders that can lead to vision loss and even blindness. In addition, Halloween makeup is often unsafe for certain skin types due to irritants and low-quality ingredients. Always perform spot tests of small amounts of makeup and theatrical blood before applying it your children’s faces or bodies.