Would you allow your child to eat homemade Halloween treats?

[Homemaker]

I kind of don't want to buy the normal Halloween junk candy and thought about doing something homemade to pass out to the kids that come to the door. Would you allow your kids to eat it or would you immediately trash it when they got home. I mean how many 30 something ladies have made posion haloween treats?!? I would try to make it relatively healthy- nothing with a ton of dye or anything.

[Whereneverever]

Honestly? I'd trash it.

[kewb]

I only let my kids eat homemade treats from people we know. I know the odds are slim that the homemade treat is poison but I am not willing to take the chance.

 

If you don't want to give away candy there are plenty of other options: Play-Doh, stickers, mini packs of crayons, pencils, pencil toppers, mini halloween pads.

[Starr]

Not unless I knew you. I don't know, I have memories of the occasional weird things in the news when I was a kid.

[Scuff]

In their bags, where I didn't know the source? No. Sorry. We don't do holloween, but I'm sure my opinion isn't unique.

[Homemaker]

Well, phooey, I guess I will just buy something. Thanks for your opinions!

[LaxMom]

Not unless it came from someone I know. I was a kid in the 70s and the scares about tainted treats were all over. The only homemade treat that was the exception came from the elderly librarian down the street from us. Mrs. Wooley made the best popcorn balls! :001_wub:

[MiztrezzLyn]

I wouldn't allow it. I'm quite paranoid about Halloween and I always inspect all of the candy and throw away anything that looks even slightly suspicious.

 

I know I would probably be called overly paranoid and that is probably true but, it is what it is :)

 

They get way more than enough candy that they won't miss anything I might get rid of. They don't even eat close to half of what they get every year anyway.

 

Seems like you might have more that wouldn't allow it than would? And what a waste of your time. I think its a nice idea and certainly probably better than all that candy but in the end I don't think it'd work out well.

[2cents]

However well intentioned the baker may be, I would have to pitch it. We have a rule that nothing is consumed that is not factory sealed. If anything looks homemade, fruits, old, tampered with etc. it immediately goes.

 

It is sad that parents have to do this but not everyone knows all their neighbors and precautions need to be taken. It isn't something that should be taken personally-it is just a fact these days.

 

If you're looking for alternatives to junky candy, you might want to visit Oriental Trading. They have a lot of non-food trick or treat toys and gadgets that would appeal to the kids. Or you could buy coupons from some of the fast food outlets for small soft-serve ice creams or donuts (not really healthy but fun anyway).

[DianeW88]

No. And not because I would think someone poisoned the treat. That doesn't happen. It would be because I wouldn't know where my child got it from, and so I wouldn't know if the person cooked under sanitary conditions or what the ingredients were.

 

Now, if my son came home and told me it was a neighbor he knew who handed it out (gave me her name), then that would probably be ok. But my 10 yo and his little posse trick-or-treat all over creation, so there's a good chance it may have come from someone we don't know...in that case, it goes in the trash. Or my dh might eat it...but I don't monitor his Halloween candy. :lol:

[Snickerdoodle]

No, because of multiple food allergies.

[ChristusG]

No, sorry.

[abbeyej]

While apparently the stories we all grew up with were *rumor*, not fact, and there are no documented cases (that I know of anyway) of children being injured by Halloween candy that had been tampered with.... Well, the stories are so ingrained that I would not likely allow my kids to eat homemade treats collected at Halloween unless I had at least a passing acquaintance with the maker.

 

http://www.snopes.com/horrors/poison/halloween.asp

[arghmatey]

No. I don't let them eat any of it.

[jasar31629]

I would from someone I knew. I wouldn't be concerned with poison so much as from safe food practices and knowing where it came from or how it was stored, yk?

[Impish]

Nope, we toss it.

 

Unless its from a neighbour we really know.

[Homemaker]

Thanks again everyone, I hate that our society is so paranoid of each other. I honestly think 99.9999% of the people who go through the trouble of making cute treats for the kids are well intentioned people with a clean kitchen who don't plan to put razor blades or poision in them. Would it change your mind if I put a label on them that said "made with love from the xxx family at 123 maple lane"?

[twoforjoy]

No. I am fully aware, rationally, that it wouldn't be poisoned. That doesn't happen. It's never happened. (The one case of "poisoned" Halloween candy that has been validated was, IIRC, an issue of a parent poisoning his own child.

 

But I grew up at a time when the paranoia about this completely non-existent threat was so high that you could actually take your Halloween candy to the police station to be x-rayed. (Because, of course, THAT wouldn't be potentially harmful!) And while I'm fully aware that it was yet another case of totally unsubstantiated mass hysteria, it was so drummed into my head that Halloween candy can be poison that I'd probably not be able to bring myself to let my kids eat candy that wasn't in a sealed wrapper.

[twoforjoy]

 

It is sad that parents have to do this but not everyone knows all their neighbors and precautions need to be taken. It isn't something that should be taken personally-it is just a fact these days.

 

It's not a fact. In fact, it's an un-fact. ;) Stories of evil neighbors poisoning candy have been circulating for a long time. It has NEVER happened. There is NOTHING to take precautions about. And it has nothing to do with "these days," because apparently the hysteria has been there for 30 years, at least.

 

But that's all it is: hysteria. That said, I'm right there with you, and I wouldn't let my kid eat it. But I do recognize that my reasons for doing so are completely and totally irrational and superstitious, and have nothing to do with reality. For me, not wanting my kids to eat un-sealed Halloween candy is akin to not wanting them to open up an umbrella indoors (assuming, of course, that there wouldn't be other good reasons for them to not open the umbrella, like bother other people with it). It's based on superstitions that I know are wrong but that are so deeply ingrained as to be hard to shake.

[Unicorn.]

Not unless it was made by a friend or relative. I used to buy things like goldfish and animal crackers for little kids. You might consider doing something like that.

[Word Nerd]

There are a lot of non-edible things you could give out instead.

[JFSinIL]

No.. Why not get snack-size bags of pretzels or chips? I have seen Halloween-themed snack packs of pretzel bags in the stores.

[kalanamak]

In my neighborhood, yes.

 

However, there has been such hue and cry, I think most lemmings coming to your door wouldn't. (This is a guess on my part.)

 

We make paper cones, which kiddo decorates, and put in a bit of candy, but also temp tattoos and a little cloth ghost puppet we get at Michaels which kiddo draws on with a fabric crayon. However, we get less than 30 kids.

[AngieW in Texas]

Only from people I know, but that has nothing to do with Halloween. This is true of Valentine's and Christmas and just in general.

[Farrar]

Absolutely. We do it all the time. From people we totally don't know, as we trick or treat our way across from our neighborhood to the one that closes the streets down and builds a fire pit in the street. Every year there's a bunch of things that are not sealed all the way (Hershey Kisses, for example) and there's always one or two homemade things.

[NicAnn]

No. BUT did you know that since they've been tracking this kind of thing, not 1 kids has been poisoned by a stranger. The kids who were (I'm assuming from the 70s) were purposely poisoned by family members. The whole razor blade in candy thing is a myth.

 

:)

[Guest submarines]

Thanks again everyone, I hate that our society is so paranoid of each other. I honestly think 99.9999% of the people who go through the trouble of making cute treats for the kids are well intentioned people with a clean kitchen who don't plan to put razor blades or poision in them. Would it change your mind if I put a label on them that said "made with love from the xxx family at 123 maple lane"?

 

Still no, sorry. :grouphug: I didn't grow up in North America, so my thoughts don't automatically jump to poison ;), but I'm very picky about ingredients, even in the absence of allergies. My kids won't be eating Halloween candy anyway.

 

Now, if you were known in the neighbourhood as the lady who bakes yummy organic cookies, I'd let them eat, even if I didn't know you personally, as long as I was sure they were yours.

[kalanamak]

No. BUT did you know that since they've been tracking this kind of thing, not 1 kids has been poisoned by a stranger. The kids who were (I'm assuming from the 70s) were purposely poisoned by family members. The whole razor blade in candy thing is a myth.

 

:)

 

I haven't looked it up, but I assumed this was true. It would be FAR too easy to track down the source of a candied apple with a razor in it. Even back in the idyllic small-town 60s there was only ONE house that gave out caramel apples, and you can bet your booties I can still tell you which house, and what the lady looked like. :)

[silliness7]

I kind of don't want to buy the normal Halloween junk candy and thought about doing something homemade to pass out to the kids that come to the door. Would you allow your kids to eat it or would you immediately trash it when they got home. I mean how many 30 something ladies have made posion haloween treats?!? I would try to make it relatively healthy- nothing with a ton of dye or anything.

 

Not from a stranger. Absolutely not. It stinks that that is the world we live in.

[Farrar]

Even though it's a total myth, there are still police departments that x-ray your Halloween candy to tell you if it's safe to eat. Sigh.

[silliness7]

While apparently the stories we all grew up with were *rumor*, not fact, and there are no documented cases (that I know of anyway) of children being injured by Halloween candy that had been tampered with.... Well, the stories are so ingrained that I would not likely allow my kids to eat homemade treats collected at Halloween unless I had at least a passing acquaintance with the maker.

 

http://www.snopes.com/horrors/poison/halloween.asp

 

What?! The poisoned pixie stick story isn't real?

 

ETA: Oh, I see. (just read the link)

 

ETA2: That pixie stick story is held up as a haunting tale in my family's repertoire of tales. I had to google to verify why. It happened in Houston in 1974. I was a 2yo Houstonian at the time. I think living nearby adds to your hysteria. What if *we* were the random neighbor kid. (not that we lived in the same neighborhood. now *that* would be freaky) I remember not being allowed to eat pixie sticks at all.ever.never. And I remember being freaked the first time I found one in my kids' Halloween bucket. Pixie sticks are now sealed so I swallowed my nervousness and let my kids eat them. Apparently in the 70's pixie sticks were not sealed.

Edited October 22, 2011 by silliness7

[jenangelcat]

I would let them eat it. The homemade treat scares from several decades ago were either hoaxes or treats from malicious relatives. The media took the stories and blew them out of proportion. There never was any tampered homemade treat from a stranger.

[Bootsie]

This is an example of our misperception of risk. There has never been a documented instance of a child in the US being poisoned (or harmed by razor blades, etc.) by Halloween candy and treats given by a neighbor or stranger.

 

I did a survey of my college students about how many students they thought were poisoned every year in the US through Halloween candy (we were discussin ability to perceive and calculate risk in the financial markets) and the average student throught there were 250-350 kids that died each year in the US from tainted Halloween candy.

[justamouse]

If I knew you very well, yes. If you were some random house we stopped at? No way.

[Mom-ninja.]

No, because we can't eat gluten. Even if the ingredients were gluten free there's the problem of cross contamination through cooking utensils, counters, and such.

[Bluegoat]

No. I am fully aware, rationally, that it wouldn't be poisoned. That doesn't happen. It's never happened. (The one case of "poisoned" Halloween candy that has been validated was, IIRC, an issue of a parent poisoning his own child.

 

But I grew up at a time when the paranoia about this completely non-existent threat was so high that you could actually take your Halloween candy to the police station to be x-rayed. (Because, of course, THAT wouldn't be potentially harmful!) And while I'm fully aware that it was yet another case of totally unsubstantiated mass hysteria, it was so drummed into my head that Halloween candy can be poison that I'd probably not be able to bring myself to let my kids eat candy that wasn't in a sealed wrapper.

 

I'm in the same boat - I know it's irrational, but I can't get over it.

[KarenNC]

I would save the homemade stuff for something like a Halloween party. Is your homeschool group, religious group, rec center, etc doing something like that?

[Mrs Mungo]

It depends. I tend to agree that homemade treats are better given out at parties.

 

If you don't want to give out candy, then there are plenty of fun non-food options.

[dirty ethel rackham]

Only if I knew the person who made them very well. As much as I love homemade stuff, I think on Halloween, it is too risky.

[Dmmetler]

You're bringing back memories-I grew up in an area with a lot of Mennonite ladies who made the most WONDERFUL homemade treats for Halloween, and I miss those homemade popcorn balls, fudge, caramel apples, cookies, and so on :). They also did the same thing for Christmas carolers. Having said that, my brother and I were only allowed to go around our immediate neighborhood, and we knew everyone there.

 

 

DD gets most of her trick or treating at our church's trunk or treat, and home made treats there wouldn't bother me at all, since, again, I know the people giving them out. But no one gives out homemade treats there, not even the ladies who seem to bake for every other occasion.

[annandatje]

Clearly we are in the minority here. We would be delighted with homemade treats. I have never handed out homemade goodies to trick or treaters because of the well-publicized fear of tainted treats. The strangest homemade treat I ever received as a child was cornbread.

[stansclan89]

Would you allow your kids to eat it or would you immediately trash it when they got home.

 

We'd trash it unless we knew you personally.

[Haiku]

Would you allow your kids to eat it or would you immediately trash it when they got home.

 

Trash it. First of all we're vegan, and second there are food allergies. I'm not paranoid about poison, but if we don't know what's in it, we won't eat it.

 

Tara

[prairiewindmomma]

Food allergies aside, I'm not so worried about the kids being purposefully poisoned as I am about food coming from a dirty kitchen. Most strangers would have no idea whether another stranger keeps a sanitary kitchen or not.

From experience, there's nothing nastier than finding cat hair in the cookie that the nice old lady down the street made. :001_huh:

 

As a parent of children with food allergies, we try to hand out non-edible treats: play doh (sold in huge kits at Sam's Club), glow in the dark bracelets (cheap at Michaels!), cheap plastic rings or teeth (Target clearance), etc. When I priced things out this year, it was cheaper to go non-edible than to go with the "premium" candy (snickers, m&m's, etc.) We usually try to keep a good mix of things, and on a night with good weather we'll have over 200 visitors to our doorstep.

[In2why]

I am making caramel apples and hot apple cider. I am only going to give them to the kids and parents that I know. All other kids from outside the neighborhood and come trick or treat here will get a lolipop, unless their parent asks if they can have one. This is the first year I am doing this, but I am excited about it and even if the parents don't approve that is up to them, as for me I am celebrating the old fashioned way for a change.

[LidiyaDawn]

Nope ~ it has nothing to do (for us) with those old stories and everything to do with not trusting someone else's kitchen (and hands) to be clean when they made them. (I don't buy from bake sales either.)

 

I'll tell you a little story.. My mother's husband had a friend years ago (he's dead now) - very jolly sort, this guy.. always good to talk your ear off for a bit. He had a thing for meat pies.. he made them by the dozens throughout the winter and was always giving them away. My mom and her husband would accept them, thank him, and then throw them out. Why? Because Mr. JollyFriend *was* the 'jolly friend' as a result of the (also homemade) beers that were never far from his hands. Beers that often caught up with him by the end of the day and left him making very poor judgements.. such as urinating in his kitchen sink.

 

Yeah, ya see why we're not keen on eating things other folks made?

[NanceXToo]

We love when our next door neighbor gives us homemade treats and when people in our Homeschool group make them for parties, but a stranger? No, we would toss them.

[higginszoo]

Unless I knew the person they got it from, I wouldn't let them eat it.

 

I'd let them keep pencils, stickers, erasers, rings, toy cars, toothbrushes, silly straws, balloons. For something healthy but prepackaged -- raisins, pretzels, granola bars.

Edited October 22, 2011 by higginszoo

[peachskittles]

I miss being little and getting caramel apples, popcorn balls and cupcakes. While my parents inspected every piece of candy, the homemade goodies where allowed to be eaten. I would allow my two sons that don't have food intolerances/allergies. The one son that has problems with food, I would come home and find him a suitable alternative while (I'm sure this would happen) my SO ate his treat. :lol:

 

*sigh* Childhood doesn't seem as fun anymore.

[SweetMissMagnolia]

only if I knew the person REALLY REALLY well would I let my ds eat a homemade treat.....sorry....