LET’S PLAY IT SAFE
It’s Halloween night tonight, so here’s a list of things for parents to keep in mind as children head out into the cold and dark to gather as much candy as they can in as short a time as possible, writes David Carrigg.
Roan Olivier, a witch, and sister Senna, a black cat, are ready to go trick-or-treating tonight in Burnaby. From safety tips to costumes and candy wrappers, check out our list of things parents need to know on the scariest night of the year.
1 The good news is ...
According to Vancouver Coastal Health dietitian Nicole Spencer, it’s perfectly fine to let your kids eat as much candy as they want on the night of Halloween and the day after.
“This one time of the year is not going to affect their nutrition,” Spencer said. “It’s the pattern of eating that affects our nutrition.”
Spencer said that on the second day, it’s the same. Let them eat as much as they want.
Then on the third day start to portion the candy out.
“You can cut (sugar) out as much as you want, but at the end of the day, they are going to turn into adults. Allow them to regulate for themselves,” said Spencer. (That noise you hear is the sound of the kids across the province calling out a collective thanks to Nicole Spencer.)
2 The bad news is ...
Be really, really careful with your kids on Halloween. A UBC report showed there is a 43 per cent higher risk of pedestrian deaths on Halloween night than on other nights near that date, and kids aged four to eight are at the highest risk.
Even without Halloween, this time of the year is dangerous for pedestrians as the days get shorter. ICBC notes November, December and January are the worst for pedestrian accidents, with dusk being the worst time of the day to be out.
It is suggested that children don’t wear masks that obscure their vision, that they wear reflective patches and carry a flashlight or glowstick.
3 Forty-one per cent of Canadians polled said Halloween should be shifted to a Saturday if Oct. 31 falls on a weekday Vancouver-based pollster Research Co. took to the phones recently to get some opinions on Halloween. It found 41 per cent of Canadians polled support moving Halloween to the last Saturday of October. Curiously, men are more in favour of a shift to Saturday (at 46 per cent), and younger people support the move more than older people do. The lowest level of support for the idea was in British Columbia. 4
Watch what your kids wear
A recent study found that 57 per cent of Canadians polled think costumes that highlight a racial stereotype, involve changing the colour of your skin or make fun of social stereotypes — like a vag- abond — are inappropriate. In addition, Vancouver police say costume weaponry has been a problem for police in the past, including plastic handguns, hatchets and pretend swords.
5
Do something with the wrappers Candy wrappers tend to go straight into the trash can.
However, London Drugs is offering a Halloween candy wrapper collection drive in British Columbia. The retailer is accepting chocolate bar and candy wrappers, chip bags and zipper-lock pouches as part of its Other Flexible Plastic Packaging collection program.