Tips to Make Halloween a Treat

I am a kid who lives in Lakewood, and I am scared about anthrax. Isn’t it possible that terrorists could contaminate the candy that we get door-to-door on Halloween?

--STEVEN BUCHANAN

Dear Steven: The chance of this happening is extremely remote. But Dr. Jonathan Fielding, director of public health for Los Angeles County, says that if you’re worried, simply be more careful than usual.

“I think that parents should provide the same cautious approach to trick-or-treating as is always recommended,” he says. “Ideally, schoolchildren should be accompanied by an adult. Before going out, especially with smaller children, it’s important for parents to talk to them ahead of time--remind them to walk on sidewalks, obey traffic signals and approach only homes that are lit and to stay in familiar neighborhoods. I would highlight that more than you normally would.”

He also recommends that trick-or-treaters use flashlights and put reflective tape on their costumes to increase visibility.

As for the all-important candy, children should bring it home and have it carefully inspected by a parent or other adult before being eaten. Any piece that appears re-wrapped or in suspicious should be tossed. Wash fruit thoroughly, and cut it before eating.

Dr. Samuel J. Stratton, medical director of the Los Angeles County Emergency Services Agency, says that copycats or pranksters may be a bigger concern this year. “You can’t predict what people are going to think is a joke .... It’s inadvisable to take any risks, certainly in the traditional way trick-or-treating is done. I would trust neighbors. But just to go running around and pick up a bag of things from places you don’t know where they’re from is inadvisable.”

Added Fielding: Enjoy Halloween--don’t spend it obsessing about possible anthrax.