If you want to get in on it, you’re urged to paint a pumpkin teal and leave it outside your home. Jake is her 3-year-old son. The project was launched back in 2014 by the Food Allergy Research Association in order to ensure that all the kids trick-or-treating would be safe whilst enjoying the holyday.
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Those who did have allergies were grateful, Moses said.
Halloween can be seriously risky for the millions of children who have allergies. “He actually gives it back out when he comes back home to the kids ringing our door”.
The group suggests buying affordable nonfood treats and placing a pumpkin painted teal – the color of food allergy awareness – in front of your house, so that parents and children with food allergies know that’s a house that will offer them a safe, nonfood treat.
“We were afraid of him getting ahold of something that we don’t know of and eating it”, Walsh said.
“No one is asking families to stop giving out candy – that’s not the idea”.
The Teal Pumpkin Project was started in 2012 by a mom in Tennessee who has a child with food allergies.
Nonfood treats could include Halloween pencils or erasers, bouncy balls, glow sticks, stickers, stencils, spider rings or vampire fangs, according to the FARE website.
“Food allergies continue to be on the rise and I think it is important that families and friends are not only aware but understanding”, said Busch.
For Nate Mansel, trick-or-treating isn’t always easy. The automatic injection device administers epinephrine in the event of a severe allergic reaction. Houses participating are marked with a teal pumpkin instead of an orange one.
“We don’t go anywhere without it”, Da Silva said. “We gave him a basket with his own candy, and we had a little party to make things fun for him, but he really wanted to go with the other kids to all the neighbors houses”. Now, more than 5 percent of American children are allergic to milk or nuts, although the reason why is unclear.
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“As a Celiac, I understand that there are certain things that you can’t have all the time, and so I thought it would be best to just have treats that everyone can enjoy”, said Soliz.
