Sweethearts Candy Blog's

Halloween is definitely scarier when you are caring for a child with a severe nut allergy. During Halloween it seems like every candy either contains or "may contain" peanuts, peanut butter, almonds or "nougat" i.e. nuts.

After many years of dealing with peanut and tree nut allergies AND having my daughter safely participate in trick-or-treating, I can tell you that having a fun and nut-free Halloween can be done. It just takes a little creativity, a little planning and a lot of tolerance for hundreds of mini Snickers Bars and Reese's that will seem to whiz at you from all angles.

Did I mention it also helps to have a sense of humor? You're going to need it, especially when you're scraping flattened Reese's Peanut Butter Cups off your front stoop in the pitch dark as I did last year. Believe me, it only SEEMS like everyone decides to crack open their peanut butter treats and drop the wrappers and half-eaten candy as soon as they reach your front door.

Here are a few tips for safe trick-or-treating with peanut and tree nut allergies or any food allergy, for that matter:

- Carry two Halloween bags. One is for "possibles" that is, candies you will review with your child when you get home and one is for "unsafe" candies. The unsafe candies will go to friends, neighbors or your workplace the next day--or in the trash, your choice. Separation of bags is important because trust me on this: one exploded Snicker's bar all over the "possibles" places them in the "unsafe" pile and that is really no fun at all.

- Make sure your child eats a meal or snack before trick-or-treating. Take a hungry child with a food allergy and dangle some Halloween candy before them--are they going to be tempted? Most likely. So don't let that happen. Filling little tummies before sending them out helps prevent your child from making bad choices purely out of hunger.

- Enlist the neighbors. If you have very young children, they can probably grasp being denied candy but not why it must be so. A few friendly neighbors can save the day here. If they are open to it, provide some of your neighbors with "safe" candy that they can offer to your little one when they ring the doorbell.

- Do a candy swap. This can be a two-pronged approach. First, we swap "unsafe" candies with our child's friends who don't have allergies. Most kids are willing to give up their lollipops, gum and other safe candies for my daughter's unwanted Reese's, Snickers and other nut-filled chocolate treats. (Chocolate is usually the most unsafe thing out there on Halloween if you have certain food allergies and especially if your child has nut allergies.)

Secondly, we tell our daughter that she can turn in any unsafe candy to us for a "safe" treat bag. I fill it with nut-free chocolate from Vermont Nut-Free or Divvies and some inedibles such as some lip balm, a book or maybe some inexpensive Halloween earrings, now that she's older. In past years we used Halloween books, Hello Kitty nail polish and coloring books. When she was younger we did a Halloween treasure hunt so that she could have fun finding the treat bag. I'll tell you a secret: she still enjoys the Halloween treasure hunt.

The candy swap adds a fun element to having to give up candy and will greatly lessen any feelings of being "deprived."

- Consider candy size and ALWAYS read the labels. Different sized candies may be produced on different production lines, so check each candy before giving it to your child, even if you think it's OK. Food labels like to surprise us, so be cautious and thorough.

If the item does NOT have allergy or nutrition information on it, don't use it.

- Emphasize other elements of Halloween, not just food. Years ago, Halloween had many facets besides getting candy treats; in fact, candy as the focal point is a relatively modern invention. I remember my grandparents telling me that Halloween used to be more about costumes, playing games, scaring their friends (all in good fun, nothing dangerous!) and having Halloween parties. Plan to do all of the above if you can. Plus, researching the origins of Halloween can open up discussion and take some of the focus off of candy and sweets.

- Enjoy Halloween and autumn traditions so that trick-or-treat isn't the whole show. Pumpkin picking and carving, vists to apple orchards, baking safe cookies and enjoying the beautiful autumn weather are all great ways to enjoy the Halloween season.

For more safe Halloween ideas including a list of candy suggestions, click here.

One of the hardest things about Halloween with food allergies is that the kids who Trick or Treat come home with bags full of candy that they can't eat. Still, for a lot of kids (and parents) Trick or Treating is a big part of Halloween that they don't want to eliminate.

So what do you do to help the kids cope with treats they can't touch?

I just got the most recent FAAN newsletter and a mom had a great suggestion. She said that she has her kids place the unsafe Trick or Treat candy outside their bedroom door on Halloween night. Then, the next morning, "The Good Witch" takes the bags but leaves them a special treat, like a toy or safe candy instead.

I love this idea. It reminds me a little bit of what I do with my daughter who ends up having to give away about 3/4 of her treats bag each year.

We started a Halloween "Treasure Hunt" the first Halloween after we discovered her nut allergies. While Dad took her trick or treating, I placed "clues" around the house leading to special Halloween treats bag filled with safe candies, plus non-edible items like small toys and a Halloween book. This was such a big hit she didn't mind giving up her candies at all. In fact, at age 9 she still looks forward to it!

The only caution I have is for those of you with non-allergic kids--you will have to do something similar with them or they will feel left out. They don't need as much as the allergic kids since they're not giving up their candy, but making it a family activity definitely cuts down on the sibling rivalry and makes it a lot more fun.

What are some of your "tricks" to compensate for the unsafe treats? I'll have more of my own time-tested suggestions soon, but reader ideas are welcome!

Wow, if Target is any indicator, Halloween is like, tomorrow, and Christmas is next weekend! I realized that it's high time I share some nut-free, (mostly) allergy-free Halloween treat ideas that are easy to find anywhere. Of course, there are a few online vendors that I love, but I will get to them in a minute. It's great to have some options to throw in your supermarket cart with the knowledge that it's safe for food-allergic kids.

I found several candy choices that are free of the top 8 allergens and definitely free of peanuts and tree nuts. A lot of the following candies are even available in Halloween-themed snack-sized bags.

While perusing the SuperTarget Halloween candy aisle today I found these "safe" choices: (Important: Please keep in mind that no candy is safe for everyone. Always consider your specific needs and/or call the candy companies if you have additional questions.)


Twizzlers

Skittles

Mike & Ike Jelly Beans

Junior Mints (not safe for all allergies, but safe for nut allergies)

Pez

Tootsie Pops

Carmel Apple Pops (made from the Tootsie Roll company, a completely nut-free facility!)

Life Savers

Starburst

Smarties

Sweet Tarts

Dum Dum Suckers

Dots (including "Candy Corn" Dots and "Bat" Dots)

Ring Pops


I even found "Candy Corn Hershey Kisses" that meet nut-free criteria. My kids LOVE these but these candies are soooo sweet. Hershey labels their candies very well and uses good manufacturing practices, so if there is any cross-contact chance, they will list it. These do not contain any nut allergen warnings at all. They are not dairy-free, however.


While all of the choices above are nut-free, they are certainly not sugar-free and not so great for the kids' teeth. If you'd like to skip edible treats altogether, here are some non-edible Halloween treats to try. Don't forget to tell the class Room Moms and teachers about some of these. I found many of the following items in the Oriental Trading Company catalog--the prices are not bad, either, when you consider how much you spend on candy. Buy in bulk and you'll save $$...just keep leftovers for next year.

Some of my favorites are:


Spider rings (classic!)

Halloween stickers (buy rolls of these and cut them off in segments to pass out at the door)

Halloween pencils

Pumpkin-shaped Ring Pops

Small, Halloween-themed toys


Another thing that I've heard some moms are doing is placing a little stack (5-10) pennies in a little baggie with orange and black ribbon ties. Little kids love to get money so this is a great non-edible idea. Unfortunately older kids won't go for this as much--they'll probably expect an iPod in the little baggie, so use your judgement.


If your allergies are nut only, as always, I recommend Vermont Nut-Free Chocolates. A great variety of Halloween-themed chocolates and jelly beans are available here.

I hope this gets everybody off to a good start and please share your ideas, too!