by Carolyn Tytler

Created on: October 25, 2007

Since Halloween is fast approaching, this is a pertinent issue. Most of us will probably be making the yearly trek to Walmart to stock up on junk food for the battalions of little ghosts and goblins who will soon be pounding on our doors. I've noticed that every year there seem to be more that could hardly be described as "little", so I'd better be prepared with treats if I hope to avoid the tricks.

I don't know a single child who doesn't like Smarties. Actually, it's hard for the adults I know to refuse them also. Most of my Halloween purchases will consist of those tasty, colorful, little circles of goodness. I buy the plain ones for several reasons.

The most important is that some people, children and adults, are extremely allergic to peanuts. If they so much as touch a box which formerly contained a peanut product, it could mean illness or death for them. Presumably, the parents of these little trick-or-treaters will be keeping a watchful eye to see that they don't receive or handle any peanut products.

But accidents happen. What if some other little goblin eats the treats and throws the box away, engrossed in the excitement of the evening as children will be? If an allergic child picks it up to check whether it's empty, a tragedy may result. I wouldn't want to be the cause of harm to any child, even in an indirect way.

Also, Smarties come in those handy little individual boxes, easy to distribute, and germ-free. They can easily be opened by parents who want to check for harmful enclosures, the appearance of which have been more prevalent in recent years. The cost is comparable to other sweet treats which abound in the stores around Halloween time.

For these reasons, my Halloween purchases this year will consist mostly of the individual boxes of plain Smarties. Now the only problem I have is trying to leave them alone myself, so that there will still be some left for the ghosts and goblins on Halloween night.

Learn more about this author, Carolyn Tytler.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.