halloween, in all its sugar-fuelled glory, is just around the corner. but some kids in ontario will be disappointed by the chief medical officer of health’s new advice: if you live in ottawa, peel, toronto and york region, door-to-door trick or treating is not recommended because of the spread of covid-19.
in early september, ontario premier rob ford ominously warned that halloween was a wait-and-see situation, advising parents not to take their kids trick-or-treating this year. ottawa public health took a similar approach, waiting to see if covid-19 numbers continue to climb before making a call on whether door-to-door trick-or-treating is safe. the bc centre for disease control (bccdc), is offering guidance around safe trick or treating that includes sticking to small groups, using tongs or candy slides to create distance while handing out treats and avoiding decorations that make people cough, like smoke machines. the centers for disease control (cdc) also offers safety guidelines, while noting that “traditional halloween activities increase the risk of getting or spreading covid-19 and influenza.”
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according to an early october leger poll , we were already divided over whether or not we will be sending our ghosts and goblins out into the streets and handing out candy on the 31st, with 52 per cent of canadians saying they won’t be partaking in all hallows eve, while 48 per cent say they will.
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according to the bccdc, tips for eating candy safely include handwashing before leaving the house, when you get home and before eating treats, using hand sanitizer for candy eaten on the go, cleaning hands after handling treats and not touching your face.
and if you are hoping to be the giver of the treats in areas where trick-or-treating is still okay, there are guidelines for you too. in addition to the now infamous candy slide — there has also been talk of candy slingshots and catapults and candy trees — other ideas include putting a table between you and trick or treaters to ensure proper distancing, disinfecting doorknobs and handrails, and setting up a table with individual wrapped treats that children can take.
candy makers have started weighing in too. in collaboration with food, health & consumer products of canada , the retail council of canada and today’s parent, nestlé canada launched the red pumpkin project , a canada -wide initiative to offer tips on safe trick or treating, how to hand out candy smartly and fun family activities. the site also encourages people to wear a red pumpkin on their costume to symbolize that “you are practicing a safe halloween” — wearing a mask, trick or treating with members of your household and staying six feet away from those not in your household.
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in the united states, the halloween & costume association, together with partners hershey and the halloween preservation society among others, has created a website to promote safe trick or treating with a chart that determines which activities are safe depending on the risk — demonstrated by colour codes — posed in each county. a limited invite party if you live somewhere classified as a green zone, to zoom parties if you happen to live in one that’s red. the site also lists social distancing guidelines best practices that covers trick or treaters, home owners and parents, as well as offering residents the ability to register as an official halloween safe house which means you pledge to follow various safety guidelines such as, not giving out candy if you are sick, wearing a mask that covers both mouth and nose and using tape to mark six foot distances in front of home to help children stay apart from each other.
thomas tsai, an epidemiologist at harvard university told wbur that halloween — and any other social interaction — should be thought of “not in terms of either zero risk or 100 per cent risk,” but rather about the probability of being infected with covid-19. “so the risk isn’t zero,” he said.
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