Safety first when trick-or-treating

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October 30, 2009

From submitted reports

Trick-or-treat hours are from 4 to 7 p.m. Oct. 31 in Bolingbrook.

The village is advising parents to take certain precautions when sending their kids out for Halloween fun.

A main piece of advice centers on possible tampering with candy. Parents should check all wrappers for signs of tampering. Suspicious items should then be brought to the Bolingbrook Police Station for examination.

Tips

The American College of Emergency Physicians suggests that adults follow these tips for a safe and fun Halloween:

1. Make sure you see all the candy before your child eats it. Avoid candy that is not wrapped in its original wrapper, as well as all fruit.

2. Make sure your child stays on the sidewalks as much as possible (off streets) and obeys all traffic signals.

3. Discuss the importance of staying together in a group. Require at least one adult to serve as a chaperone during trick-or-treat gatherings.

4. Make sure your child knows the potential dangers from strangers. Make sure they know never to accept rides from strangers or visit unfamiliar homes or areas.

5. Avoid costumes that could cause children to trip, such as baggy pants, long hems, high heels and oversized shoes.

6. Avoid costumes that obstruct the child's sight or vision.

7. Avoid masks if possible. If your child must wear one, make sure it is well ventilated.

8. Make sure costume fabric, wigs and beards are made of flame-resistant materials, such as nylon or polyester.

9. Keep candlelit jack-o'-lanterns away from children so they can't get burned or set on fire.

10. Make sure costumes are visible at night: avoid dark colors. Add reflective tape to the costume so your child is more visible to motor vehicles.

11. Take a flashlight while trick-or-treating as visibility decreases long before it gets really dark.

12. Check accessories such as swords, knives, wands and other pointed objects. Make sure they are made from flexible materials and have dulled edges.

Village officials also said that parents should make sure children's costumes fit and that they can see well. Children should also be told to trick-or-treat in their own neighborhoods.

If children are going to be out after dark, parents should make sure the kids carry a flashlight, village officials said.

Also, children should be sure to use the sidewalk when they are out on the hunt for treats. If there are no sidewalks, children should walk on the left side of the street facing the cars, officials said.

Also, kids should only look for treats at houses where the lights are on.

The nation's emergency physicians want costumes, candy and fun times to be the only things you and your children experience this Halloween. But unfortunately each year a fun, spooky adventure can become an all-too-real nightmare that ends in the emergency department.

"Halloween should be about good times and fun with friends and family, yet sadly each year we see kids who are injured while trick-or-treating," said Dr. Angela Gardner, president of the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP). "Many of these injuries are easily prevented if a parent or guardian were to take some very simple precautions."

Common Halloween injuries include eye injuries from sharp objects, burns from flammable costumes and children hit by cars as they walk and run around busy neighborhoods.

ACEP also recommends that children trick-or-treat at organized Halloween festivities, such as at local churches, shopping malls or schools. This way children are not walking in the dark and it allows constant adult supervision.

For more on this and other health-related topics, go to www.EmergencyCareForYou.org.

ACEP and MedicAlert Foundation are partnering to promote EmergencyCareforYou.org and to educate the public about medical emergencies.