is trick or treating dangerous?

[swamp]

A spin off from another thread on EE.

Do you take your kids trick or treating? Do you think it's dangerous? If you don't take them, what do you do instead?

I take mine.

We go in the neighborhood where my friend grew up, they give away bags of chips, full size candy bars, juice bags, and cans of soda.

[Deleted]

yes I think it is dangerous, but I like to live on the edge so I take my kids trick or treating.

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

Yes we take her and no I don't think it is dangerous. Since she is only two DH and I plan on eating most of the candy. ;D

We stick to our neighborhood right now. Then we're going to take her down to DH's parents and hit up some of his relatives.

As she gets older we'll branch out and take her further.

[thyme4change]

We trick or treat in our neighborhood. We know a lot of neighbors. It is a giant party. People pour out into the street, we usually sit with the closest neighbors while the other parent walks with the kids, or our kids go out with another family. It is awesome fun. I guess I live in a "better" neighborhood.

[❤ mollymouser ❤]

I think that trick or treating could be reasonably classed as "potentially" dangerous, depending on a myriad of factors: crime rate in one's community, where one chooses to take their children door-to-door, the age of one's children, the amount of parental supervision during the trick or treating process, as well as the candy-sorting process, etc. Our local news ran a story a few days ago about the number of children struck by cars last Halloween (which, in all fairness, was a risk I hadn't particularly thought about until the news story.)

As for very small children, I always wonder if it's hard to explain to them the general safety rule of "don't take candy from strangers" while dressing them up and taking them door-to-door to .... "take candy from strangers."

And as for churches and similar groups who organize "trunk of treats" (where children go from car to car in a designated parking lot, taking candy from strangers who keep it in the trunk of their car) ... all that does, really, is eliminate the need to walk around the block and get some exercise while begging for free sugar.

But, hey, if you've got a safe neighborhood, you're going to supervise your children, and you're find with loading them up with candy, etc. from people you don't know very well ... have fun! ;D

[happyhoix]

I saw a study a few years back that examined all the stories of kids getting razors in their carmal apples and popcorn balls, and they found no actual cases of this type of thing happening, only urban myths.

I didn't let DS have anything that wasn't pre-packaged, however, unless someone I knew well made it, but I don't think people are trying to kill off kids through Halloween treats.

I was always more worried about DS getting hit by a car in the dark. I always went with him and we always stopped by nine, when most of the rest of the trick or treaters went home. We live in a rural area so we have a lot of trick or trunk events in church parking lots just for this reason.

[swamp]

We have a problem with Trick or Treating with DS. He wants to go in everyone's house and look around.

[Deleted]

Oct 9, 2012 11:40:44 GMT -5 ❤ mollymouser ❤ said:

As for very small children, I always wonder if it's hard to explain to them the general safety rule of "don't take candy from strangers" while dressing them up and taking them door-to-door to .... "take candy from strangers."

Never too early to start teaching that every rule has an exception! ;D

We trick or treat in our neighborhood. We know a lot of neighbors. It is a giant party. People pour out into the street, we usually sit with the closest neighbors while the other parent walks with the kids, or our kids go out with another family. It is awesome fun. I guess I live in a "better" neighborhood.

This is what we used to do before my parents moved to FL. All of their kids would bring the grandkids over for dinner and TOT in our old neighborhood. It was fun catching up with my childhood friends' parents.

Now we TOT in our neighborhood, but DD's "not BF's" parents invited us to TOT with them in their neighborhood (they live in the most expensive neighborhood in WNY). I can only imagine what kind of booty they are going to end up with....

[❤ mollymouser ❤]

Oct 9, 2012 11:44:10 GMT -5 swamp said:

We have a problem with Trick or Treating with DS. He wants to go in everyone's house and look around.

Dress him in costume and take him to some Open Houses

[Phoenix84]

I don't have kids, but I think like most things, it's not dangerous if you're smart about it.

[Wisconsin Beth]

I don't see the point in taking the little ones ToTing, so we didn't. We'd take them to the grandparents houses. Now that they're 3 and 4.5, we got real costumes for them this year and the current plan is that we'll take them ToTing at my sister's. They do the night time ToTing and it's a close neighborhood. I don't feel safe letting them go to very many houses in our neighborhood. And most of the people don't do Halloween. So the kids will help us hand out candy at home and do the "real" one at my sister's. Plus, my sister's kids will enjoy taking them around their neighborhood. They're 12, 14 and 16. ;D

[alabamagal]

I never worried about the tainted candy or child molesters out on Halloween. But I took my kids out until they were 10 or 11, mainly because our streets have limited street lights and no sidewalks. I always fear people getting hit by cars (even adults out walking for exercise at night).

The last year I took my kids out, they were maybe 10, 9 and 7, I asked them if they knew how to get back to our house, and one of them had no clue (although he is directionally challengerd!)

[raeoflyte]

This is the first year we're doing real trick or treating with ds. In past years we go to my grandparents assisted living, and take him room to room. The assisted living provides the candy, so there isn't stress around that part either--unless they're also trying to off the old people too.

This year we're going with friends in their neighborhood, and will hit up family as well.

[giramomma]

We take the kids out.

I went once as a kid, before I was school aged. My parents thought it was too dangerous. When I was older, I got a couple of bucks or a cassette instead.

As for very small children, I always wonder if it's hard to explain to them the general safety rule of "don't take candy from strangers" while dressing them up and taking them door-to-door to .... "take candy from strangers."

DH and I have a giggle every time we go to a parade. Our kids run into the street to take candy from strangers or pick up candy from the street and then proceed to eat it. We enjoy being inconsistent with our parenting sometimes.

[Deleted]

I always took the kids. They age out at about 10+ or so anyway. I probably would let my kids trick or treat to about age 12. So, if they were going with friends around the neighborhood i might let them or maybe not because they might be more inclined to mischief.

[jeffreymo]

I don't think it's dangerous. We take our son to our immediate neighbors, and then to my SIL where he hits their neighborhood with his cousins. We always have one of us walking with him.

[swasat]

We take the kids ToT. Since the DS turned 3. DD joined too once she turned 3. But then I live in a well off neighborhood that has TONS of children.

The kids always love it and I love dressing them up.

IMHO, there are too many other dangers in the world to worry about ToT. If the kids are accompanied by parents and the neighborhood is relatively safe, I don't see any issue with the ToT.

[bean29]

When my kids were small, I took them to the Milwaukee County Zoo. The kids wear costumes, they have a costume parade and give out prizes. I think the top prize was a bike.

The Zoological society gave out treats in every building and the kids made a surprisingly good haul.

As they got older we let them go ToT in the neighborhood. The kids do really well in my neighborhood. Last year it rained. Any kids that actually came to the door did very well b/c hardly anyone was out.

[Phoenix84]

I never trick or treated past age 12. I don't understand why teenagers do it. After age 12 I would rather stay up late and watch a Friday the 13th marathon and eat all my sister's candy.

[Angel!]

I don't think trick or treating is really dangerous. My neighborhood kind of sucks because it is a fairly low income area. On average it seems only every 3rd or 4th house even has their lights on & there aren't many ToTers.

Last year we went to a neighborhood near downtown that I heard about that apparently half the city goes to. It was absolutely packed & hard to navigate because there were so many people. It was really fun though because they go all out with massive decorations & costumes at each house & you don't even have to ring doorbells because there are so many ToTers that the homeowners just sit outside. Talking to some of the people that live there, each house gives out several hundred dollars worth of candy.

[thyme4change]

I never trick or treated past age 12. I don't understand why teenagers do it.

ummm - free candy?!

[zibazinski]

Yes, I eat too many snickers!

[Peace Of Mind]

It must be in some areas because we get people from other neighborhoods all the time. They even admit it! We must give better candy and their neighborhoods are fine. ;D

[Colleenz]

It might be dangerous, or it might build up the constitution.

I make sure DS eats he razor blades. I don't want him to suffer from anemia.

Seriously WTF need to search for the other thread. Has it really come to kiddos should not trick or treat

The biggest danger here is the 25 pounds of candy fat we carry...

[Malarky]

Oct 9, 2012 15:32:03 GMT -5 Angel! said:

Last year we went to a neighborhood near downtown that I heard about that apparently half the city goes to. It was absolutely packed & hard to navigate because there were so many people. It was really fun though because they go all out with massive decorations & costumes at each house & you don't even have to ring doorbells because there are so many ToTers that the homeowners just sit outside. Talking to some of the people that live there, each house gives out several hundred dollars worth of candy.

That would be like my neighborhood. We really get into it. Maybe not several hundred dollars worth of candy, but usually a couple of hundred kids. ;D

[spartan7886]

Oct 9, 2012 14:42:38 GMT -5 Phoenix84 said:

I never trick or treated past age 12. I don't understand why teenagers do it. After age 12 I would rather stay up late and watch a Friday the 13th marathon and eat all my sister's candy.

I did Trick or Treat for UNICEF in high school. Mainly I just liked to dress up. You ask for the change and you get candy too, which you just have to make sure your candy bag is hidden so they don't think you're being greedy. Then again, I've always gotten a lot of pleasure out of the simple things. I got to be a kid again for a couple hours.

[swamp]

The rule at our house is mom gets the Reese's peanut butter cups.

[lynnerself]

Oct 9, 2012 19:42:02 GMT -5 swamp said:

The rule at our house is mom gets the Reese's peanut butter cups.

We buy several bags of candy even though we average about 10-12 kids a year. (Don't want to run out you know).
Some how the Almond Joys never make it to Halloween.

[kgb18]

I think the most dangerous part of ToT in our neighborhood are the jackasses who insist on speeding through the neighborhood even though there are all kinds of people on the street. I'm amazed we haven't had a tragedy yet. Usually the neighbors shout at the speeders.

DD is still very small so we just take her to a few houses on our street. Last year was the first year she went. It was a cold, rainy night and she had enough after about 7 houses, which was fine with me.

We get a ton of kids at our house. Last year, I think because of the weather, we probably only had about 60 kids. Years past when the weather was nice we got upwards of 100.

[sheilaincali]

When DS was over 2 he did his first TOT in my parents neighborhood (where I grew up) we obviously went with him. After that we did the mall for a few years (nice and indoors) the stores all had an employee in the doorway handing out candy.
In CA it was nice because the weather was much better for TOTing (no snowsuits over your costume) but we always just did our neighborhood and went with him.

Back in Minnesota again- DS is 14 and he stopped going a couple of years ago. My nieces and nephews all come over and DS will take them to a handful of neighbors and they hit up a couple of relatives or friend's houses and then head home.

It's hit of miss in Minnesota- some years it's 60 degrees and decent and other years it's freezing and snowing out. Hard to plan it much in advance.

I think we get around 40 or so trick or treaters that come to our house.

ETA- when DS takes his little cousins a few adults still go with, we wait on the sidewalk and DS takes them up to the door. Usually the neighbors give DS candy for helping the little kids treat or treat.