Do you inspect the trick or treat candy that your kids are given before they are allowed to eat it? My parents always did when we were younger. I've always taken my daughters to family / friends / neighbors that we know on Halloween but this year we're going with a group of friends so we'll be going to houses that we don't know. My husband says I'm paranoid and part of me agrees that it does seem a bit much BUT then there's also the little voice that says better safe and sorry!!!!!
Yes, I have to protect my kids from 100 Grand bars. I would hate for them to develop the addiction to them that plagues their mother.
Otherwise, not really, we just toss anything that isn't wrapped.
Anything homemade, or cookies,etc. in ziplock baggies I throw out..Unless it's from family/friends. I give it a once over, and that's it. Nothing wrong with being paranoid..
Yes, I look at all the candy. My grandchildren looked with me and learned what to look for. Now they do the looking and will occasionally discard a piece because the packaging looks tampered with.
The likelihood that anything has been tampered with is slim but as you say it's better to be safe than sorry.
Since candies are individually wrapped/sealed, there's not much inspection required. I looked it up once, and read an article that said there have only been 2 (TWO!) documented incidents of poisoned/tampered halloween candy, so it's mostly an urban legend. I do a quick scan and throw away any opened/unsealed candies, but other than that, no worries.
We inspect the candy. Not really because it could be poisoned, but torn wrappers and opened candy mean it could have germs. You don't know how clean people's hands are, and with so many kids grabbing at the candy in the bowl (and you don't know where THEIR hands have been!) anything opened could have bacteria.
My mom used to inspect my candy and we would toss the open ones. I think it was also a way for her to find the candies I didn't like so she could have them. :-)
One of my kids is allergic to nuts so we have to inspect his candy anyway and he really doesn't get to keep much of it. He is almost 4 so he hasn't really minded so far. I buy safe candy and toys that I can swap out for him so he still gets something.
Yes I do inspect it. Last year I did allow them to eat a few pieces while we were walking but I would look it over first - make sure it wasn't already open, that kind of thing. I always dump out their candy and look through it and take out anything that looks super old, already opened, etc.
And then I also take out a few of my favorite pieces and eat them with them!!
My mom always gave it a looksee. Look for torn wrappers, poked holes, homemade goods from people you don't know. She wasn't paranoid about it, but she did teach us things to look for and threw away anything suspicious. My DD is not allowed to eat candy before I've looked at it, either out or at home.
No. I don't "inspect it" I do tell my kids same as most if it is open (candy corns) or homemade, we don't eat it.
Do what you need to feel safe. No one should knock you for that. However, the big "candy scares" of the 80's rarely happened the way we remember. For your reading enjoyment - haha.
http://www.snopes.com/horrors/poison/halloween.asp
I never understand this as it seems if someone wanted to hurt random kids they could easily tamper with candy in the store and just leave it on the shelf.
I just tell them not to eat anything that is opened and let them go for it!
wow sherri g, that makes me sort of sad for your kids. =( anyway, we do a quick check of the candy and throw out anything that is open or isn't factory wrapped. candy tampering is not an old wives tale, it has happened and the responsible thing would be to at least check to make sure everything is wrapped as it should be. JMO. Good luck.
My parents always inspected our too. Funny how I never got back the Snicker's bars (Daddy's favorite) or the Almond Joy Bars (Mom's favorite).
Yes, my husband and I checked it..when she got home.
Then allowed our daughter to eat it.
Always inspect, but you don't need to put every piece under a magnifying glass or anything. I remember getting home and dumping out the candy when I was little. My parents looked it over and would give me the go ahead. Once we were old enough to look for ourselves, we checked it without any help. As for eating while still out, I would make a rule that they need to ask first. Tale a look at the package and say yes or no. This will also help you keep track of how much is being eaten. . . no one wants a tummy ache from too much candy!
When I was young I only went with a friend once that we went to peoples houses that we didn't know. And they inspected it. With my kids we take them to peoples houses we don't know so yes I inspect it.
Absolutely!
Standing Halloween Rule #1: Nothing goes in your mouth tiil Mom & Dad have checked it over......
.......(& Mom has had a chance to swipe any and all Junior Mints & Dad has jacked any and all Bit-O-Honeys....Ha-Ha!)
Always go with your instincts when it comes to being a Mom. My D is 5. And I'm going to look over all her candy. Then confiscate all the Butterfingers :D
We made it a math activity at that age so they didn't realize what I was doing. I would have them sort the candy by type, then we would count each type. During this I did tell them any unopened stuff or kinds no one liked we put in the reject pile.
I worked in an animal hospital and the vet offered to x-ray my daughter's candy . I wasn't really worried about it being unsafe but she liked having the picture for her room, so we did it.
I didn't inspect it - just told her not to eat anything with a wonky wrapper.
No, but we live in a small town where everyone knows everyone. I make them throw away unwrapped things, not things homemade by people we know, but the ones that fall out of their wrapper. Beyond that, I have never over stressed about it.
Yes. Better to be safe than sorry.
My parents "checked" the candy, but back then my dad was checking for the candy that He wanted! :)
My kids are not big candy kids. Very little is eaten. Here in Oak Lawn we have a lady, that works at the park dist, that will take all of your candy and send it to the troops! I love that idea!. I encourage everyone out there to Please look into someone similar in your area instead of throwing it out or letting it sit in your pantry until it does go bad.
Happy Halloween!
Yes, I always made sure that all the candy was wrapped. I can't believe that there are still people out there who give out unwrapped candies and think kids will be allowed to eat them
Checked our candy last year and if you can believe it this a person handed out expired candy from 2000. Tossed it right away, called my friend but her son had already eaten the candy. He didn't get sick from it, but I won't be trick or treating at that house again.
Toss your husband his fav candy bar when you're inspecting the stash. He'll get over it.
(Yes, first thing when we get home is to inspect the loot - dump it all on the floor and sort and look at what we got. Toss Dad an Almond Joy, I eat a Butterfinger, toss Papa a Whoppers. Cousins trade "I don't like banana Laffy Taffy. Trade you my two bananas for one of your Milk Duds!" We don't really "inspect" it for bad stuff, but rather inspect it for good. Of course if I see something unwrapped I grab it and trash it.)
I do not inspect the candy, as I am not worried about tampering. (Candy tampering is an old wives tale.) I do make the kids wait until we have got it home and sorted it, because I am all about delayed gratification. I also make them wait to open Christmas presents until after we sit down and have breakfast, and no Easter candy until after lunch, etc. We do throw out anything that is open.
Mz Kitty, here's the dirt on candy tampering,
http://www.snopes.com/horrors/poison/halloween.asp
And as for delayed gratification,
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-life/life/healt...
Cheryl B--please don't toss the candy. Take it to a friend!
If you want to be better safe then sorry, you should be safe. But if you act all freaked out about your kids candy, and insist on looking at it, it might scare your kids. I think you should just take a quick peek, and if there is any brand or kind of candy you don't recognize, then just take a closer look at it. Just try to make sure your kids don't anything already opened.
Good Luck, and have a happy Halloween!!
EVERY year I inspect her candy. She is 10. She is not allowed to eat it until I check every single piece. Better safe than sorry! We go around our neighborhood, I don't know everyone personally.
Yes I do inspect it. The kids know that they get back from trick or treating and mom and dad will go through the candy. Any that looks opened or tampered with I throw out. Then they are allowed to eat. Of course if it's from a relative I don't inspect it.
Just a little piece of mind.
I usually do, just to make sure it's all wrapped properly and there are not suspicious holes in it.
This year GD just got braces so she can't eat any candy. She's going trick or treating but we'll probably just toss the candy.
Has your husband been living in a cave or under a rock? Of course you have to inspect the candy! Not only could it be open, messed with, or old like Anne said, but there may be things you don't want your kids to eat. Our teeth have always been important and I didn't allow those chewy fruit snacks, so those came right out of the bag.
It's dangerous out there and the sooner your husband and kids understand that the better off you will all be.
I always inspect my son's treats(sadly enough, you have to in this day and age). When I give out candy, I also have it in easy-to-inspect bags for the kids(unless it's a group of friends).
We have a "swap meet" after the trick-or-treating is over, where the adults inspect the candy over a cuppa, then the kids get to "swap" , trade, or upgrade their treats. This way, you get to see their haul, and the kids get to pick their favourites. I also take the time to portion out their haul in ziploc bags so there's less tummy/dental woes.
BTW, for those looking for a less sweet treat, EA and PopCap are working with the ADA on preventing Zombie Mouth. They're giving away Plants vs. Zombies(on PopCap's site) for free(you can print out coupons to give trick or treaters instead of candy).
Good Luck, and let us know what happened.
I ALWAYS inspected the candy and we threw away anything that was OPEN or looked like there was a problem with it...this is SAFETY issue.
Oh yeah. I check for unwrapped candy. Yes, it could be a manufacturer error but I want to be sure. I also do not allow my kids to eat those double bubble gums. They stick to everything and are horrible. Also, in the past, we actually had someone pass out cough drops. Sorry but Halls is not a candy. I also look for things I prefer my kids not eat. I do not expect razors or anything like that but you never really know what people will pass out.
Don't be sorry, some hospitals give a free ex-ray on candy to make sure. There are a lot of stupid people that want to hurt kids, inspect that candy. They are your kids, keep them safe.
