It’s that time of year again! Children of all ages wait ever so anxiously to be able to dress up as their favorite idol or spooky ghoul. For parents, however, Halloween consists of much more than just dressing up, and ensuring the safety of your children should be the number one priority this season. Here at Ginarte, we take safety very seriously, and have provided you with some helpful tips as you prepare for Trick-O-Treating!Children like to look their best, and sometimes start planning their costumes months in advance. As important as it is for them to look their best, it is essential for parents to make sure their costumes are hazard free! The American Academy of Pediatrics has been helpful enough to provide some tips to ensure costume safety:

• Plan costumes that are bright and reflective. Make sure that shoes fit well and that costumes are short enough to prevent tripping, entanglement or contact with flame.
• Consider adding reflective tape or striping to costumes and trick-or-treat bags for greater visibility.
• Because masks can limit or block eyesight, consider non-toxic makeup and decorative hats as safer alternatives. Hats should fit properly to prevent them from sliding over eyes.
• When shopping for costumes, wigs and accessories look for and purchase those with a label clearly indicating they are flame resistant.
• If a sword, cane, or stick is a part of your child’s costume, make sure it is not sharp or too long. A child may be easily hurt by these accessories if he stumbles or trips.
• Do not use decorative contact lenses without an eye examination and a prescription from an eye care professional. While the packaging on decorative lenses will often make claims such as “one size fits all,” or “no need to see an eye specialist,” obtaining decorative contact lenses without a prescription is both dangerous and illegal. This can cause pain, inflammation, and serious eye disorders and infections, which may lead to permanent vision loss.

Once your kids have their hazard proof costumes on, it is time to practice street safety. This applies to both trick-o-treaters and drivers. According to Safe Kids Worldwide, “children are more than twice as likely to be hit by a car and killed on Halloween than on any other day of the year.” Some tips provided by Safe Kids to avoid car accidents are as follows:

Walk Safely

• Cross the street at corners, using traffic signals and crosswalks.
• Look left, right and left again when crossing and keep looking as you cross.
• Put electronic devices down and keep heads up and walk, don’t run, across the street.
• Teach children to make eye contact with drivers before crossing in front of them.
• Always walk on sidewalks or paths. If there are no sidewalks, walk facing traffic as far to the left as possible. Children should walk on direct routes with the fewest street crossings.
• Watch for cars that are turning or backing up. Teach children to never dart out into the street or cross between parked cars.

Drive Extra Safely on Halloween

• Slow down and be especially alert in residential neighborhoods. Children are excited on Halloween and may move in unpredictable ways.
• Take extra time to look for kids at intersections, on medians and on curbs.
• Enter and exit driveways and alleys slowly and carefully.
• Eliminate any distractions inside your car so you can concentrate on the road and your surroundings.
• Drive slowly, anticipate heavy pedestrian traffic and turn your headlights on earlier in the day to spot children from greater distances.
• Popular trick-or-treating hours are 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. so be especially alert for kids during those hours.

Many of these safety tips are practiced day to day and may seem like common sense, but it is important for you to be mindful of them and discuss them with your children. For those of you who do not have children, but are planning to open your doors to trick-o-treaters; the American Red Cross has provided some helpful tips for keeping your property safe for all ghosts and goblins:

• Sweep leaves from the sidewalks and steps.
• Clear the porch or front yard of any obstacles that a child could trip over.
• Restrain any household pets.
• Use a glow stick instead of a candle in the jack-o-lantern to avoid a fire hazard.

We hope these tips have been helpful, and wish you a very Happy Halloween. Stay Seen! Stay Safe! Stay Spooky!

Sources:
American Academy of Pediatrics

Safe Kids Worldwide

American Red Cross