Holidays - Halloween

FAACT's Halloween Resources

Halloween can be scary – and we’re not just talking about decorations. Avoiding unsafe foods at school and other celebrations is often a challenge for children with food allergies.

FAACT created resources to help families have more fun and less fright this Halloween, including blog posts, Pinterest boards, podcast episodes, and activities to help educate your community.

Download FAACT's Halloween Resources handout

FAACT's Teal Ghost Kit

A cool chill has ushered in a teal treat sure to put a smile on your face this fall.

Halloween is here, but there is no need to fear! FAACT created a Teal Ghost Kit as a fun way to include children with food allergies in the Halloween festivities and help them have a safe and happy Halloween.

Teal Ghost your neighbors by downloading FAACT’s “You’ve Been Teal Ghosted” signs. Add allergy-friendly, non-food treats like glow sticks, bouncing balls, or fidget spinners. Then secretly Teal Ghost your neighbor by placing the sign and goodies on their doorstep. Ring the doorbell and fly away!

Your neighbors will love their Teal Ghost Kit and will learn more about food allergies. It is the best way to troll – we mean teach – the community about food allergies!

Download FAACT's Teal Ghost Kit

FAACT's Halloween Safety Tips

Set the stage for a fun Halloween with these safety tips:

Bring epinephrine: Carry two epinephrine auto-injectors while trick-or-treating, to parties, at the mall, and anywhere else there may be Halloween candy.
NO snacking: Give your child incentive to wait until they get home before eating treats. Switch out unsafe candy for safe treats, toys, or even money.
Dress up: Can your child wear gloves to help avoid direct contact with allergens? Accessorize costumes with teal buttons, stickers, or other awareness items to let other parents know about food allergies.
Speak up: Have fun with a little role playing. If they see candy they know they can have, teach them to ask for it. If someone offers something they can’t have, they can say, “No, thank you. I have a food allergy.”
Discuss candy to avoid: It’s one thing to tell your child to avoid candy with peanuts, but do they know what the wrappers look like so they don’t accidentally grab one? Teach them to scan candy bowls for allergens and even avoid safe treats if they’re surrounded by unsafe candy.
Look around: Watch what other kids are eating nearby and scan for any candy/wrappers thrown on the ground.
Read ALL labels: Sometimes snack-sized candy is manufactured differently. Ingredients and manufacturing processes change. NEVER assume an item is safe just because it was safe last year. You may need to research some ingredient lists online.
Hand out non-food treats: Halloween-themed pencils, glow necklaces, rings, and temporary tattoos ensure every child can enjoy the fun. Avoid items like Play-Doh that contain food ingredients (and potential allergens).
Set up safe stops: Place small bags of safe candy at a few neighbors’ houses so your child can go there and get it. It also gives you a chance to educate neighbors about food allergies.
BYO treats: When friends or neighbors host a Halloween bash, bring allergen-free treats for the whole gang so your child won’t feel left out. (Be sure those treats are kept away from other foods.)
Sing about it: Kyle Dine created a cute and catchy song, “Food Allergy Halloween Safety,” to teach children about safety.
Read about it: The No Biggie Bunch wrote a cute book, “Trade-or Treat Halloween,” about kids swapping the candy that contains their allergens.

Download FAACT's Halloween Safety Tips poster

Shine TEAL In Your Neighborhood

Teal Ghosts and Pumpkins are such a great way to include children with food allergies and help them enjoy a safe and happy Halloween. It helps include children with other dietary restrictions too!

To increase awareness about food allergies this Halloween:

Sign it: Let others know you support people with food allergies and have non-allergic treats. Download and print FAACT’s FREE posters:
Treat with teal: Hand out non-food treats such as FAACT’s Teal Ghost logoed fun and colorful prize packs, available at Walmart stores across the U.S.
Educate parents: Hand out food allergy information to parents of trick-or-treaters, such as FAACT’s FREE downloadable flyer, “10 FAACTs about Food Allergies.” Maybe next year you’ll have a neighborhood filled with teal pumpkins!
Color the classroom: Talk to your child’s teacher about bringing “teal” into the classroom with a non-food or allergy-friendly party. If you’re able, help out at the party and offer ideas for allergy-friendly activities. This allows you to watch over your child during the party and show others how easy it is to have fun celebrating Halloween without allergens. (If you need ideas for games and crafts, check out FAACT's Halloween Pinterest Boards.)
Go for the whole school: Ask the principal to place a teal pumpkin at the school and offer parents information about food allergies. If you’re able, supply the school with a list of ideas for non-food and/or allergy-friendly items, such as FAACT’s Bookmarks and Posters.
Make it profitable: Ask local businesses to help spread the word with a teal pumpkin and informational poster. Not only are they helping children with food allergies, it’s a great sales tactic. They can place sales items next to the pumpkin so customers can easily purchase these items to get involved. For example: At a home improvement store, have teal paint and brushes. At stores like Target and Walmart, have small, non-food items.

Alternative Halloween Traditions

Consider changing up Halloween to put the focus on giving to others and bringing them joy. Whether your child stays home and passes out the allergy-friendly treats or goes trick or treating and donates all their loot, they can feel good about helping others.

Donate: Some dentists and other businesses offer a “Halloween Candy Buyback” and send the candy to U.S. troops overseas. Your child can even send a letter of encouragement to our troops!
Celebrate: Make it a family holiday. Have something fun for dinner, dress up in costumes or silly pajamas, and eat your favorite treats while watching a movie together.

The excitement you bring to the idea will determine their excitement for doing it! You could say it like…

“I have a great idea. What if we make Halloween…Famoween (or something silly)? We can watch all the kids come to the door and see all their cool costumes. It will be like a parade that comes right to our door! We can even pass out flyers that tell parents about food allergies. Then when it’s all over, we’ll make some popcorn, eat a bunch of your favorite candy, and watch your favorite movie together.”

Not only would this be fun and safe, it would build lasting family memories.

FAACT Crossword Puzzles & Word Searches

You won't want to miss FAACT's Halloween-themed educational crossword puzzles and word searches. These are fun puzzles to do at home or share with your classmates and friends.

Download 10 FAACTS About Food Allergies to answer questions contained in the crossword puzzles and word searches.

10 FAACTS About Food Allergies

Download our fun crossword puzzles and word searches:

Halloween