Simple COVID-19 Safety Tips for Trick-or-Treating on Halloween 2021

The air is getting colder, pumpkins are on porches, and kids across the country are planning their spooky costumes. As a professor of pediatrics and mother of four young children, I know the excitement and fear that pandemic vacations bring to children and parents alike.

Halloween 2020 brought creative ways to trick or treat while minimizing the spread of infection (candy slingshot, anyone?). But scientists have since determined that the risk of transmission of COVID-19 through candy wrappers is low.

Still, the extremely contagious delta strain of coronavirus continues to show moderate to high infection rates in many parts of the country, and it continues to make children and teens sicker than the dominant strain that ravaged the world in 2020 Parents may wonder if participation of Halloween fun and games is safe, or that they’d better stay home this year.

Experts give trick-or-treating the green light this year.

dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), said children can indeed still enjoy a safe, fun Halloween. But here are a few simple precautions trick-or-treaters can take.

1. Mask on

Children under the age of 12 are not yet eligible for a COVID-19 vaccination, which means that the majority of children who go door-to-door are still at increased risk of contracting the virus.

As COVID-19 spreads through the respiratory tract, masking remains an effective way to reduce the spread of infection for children 2 years and older. Unfortunately, Halloween costume masks are not a substitute for masks designed to limit the spread of viral particles. Parents can get creative about making a face mask as part of a child’s costume. Or kids can wear a face mask under their costume mask. Parents should ensure that their child can breathe comfortably if they choose this option.

Regardless of vaccination status, children and parents must wear masks when attending indoor parties or going door-to-door due to the close interaction with other people. Those handing out candy should also wear a face mask.

Candy cookers were a popular way to trick or treat while maintaining social distancing in 2020.

2. Keep your hands clean

Washing hands and using disinfecting handgel remains priority. While the chance of spreading COVID-19 through candy wrappers is relatively small, that risk is further reduced when good hand hygiene is practiced before handing out candy.

Kids should wash their hands before eating their sweets in case they pick up germs while on the go. The candy wrappers themselves are not considered contagious, so there is no need to quarantine the candy before eating it.

3. Celebrate the outdoors

Other ways families can celebrate while maintaining a low-risk status include keeping gatherings and activities out, where people are less likely to contract the virus, and keeping groups small.

Children who show signs of illness should be kept at home to rest and avoid exposing others to their germs. Those 12 years and older should receive the COVID-19 vaccination to protect against serious infections.

It feels nice to stare at the start of the 2021 holiday season with some semblance of normalcy. While the risk of COVID-19 is not entirely a thing of the past, families should enjoy trick-or-treating while taking reasonable precautions.

Written by Meg Sorg, clinical assistant professor of nursing, Purdue University.

This article was first published in The Conversation.