Halloween candy options for kids with food allergies

What do you give kids with food allergies on Halloween? There are options. Some items can be purchased at Fox Valley area stores while others need to be ordered online, which requires a little bit of planning. The good news is there are fun, tasty options that kids with food allergies can enjoy. If you want kids with food allergies to have "normal" outing for Halloween, partner with neighbors who will hand out snacks for your child specifically. You can plant then ahead of time so there's no fuss at the door. Or you can offer a trade-in with your kids when they come home. Ask them to take stock of all their candy. Let me inspect it, sort it and decide who they want to give it to. Then you can trade them equal pieces of the allergy free variety. Candy can be donated to a wide variety of good causes, including sending it to our troops overseas. Some area dentists even sponsor a candy trade-in where they accept candy from kids and send it to our troops.

It's not just allergens in the candy many parents need to be concerned about this Halloween. In the past, retailers have found it hard to cater to families with food allergies and sensitivities around Halloween. Many candy producing facilities contend with cross-contamination. Make sure products are created in a facility free of: wheat/gluten, casein/dairy, tree nuts, peanuts, shellfish, fish, soy and eggs — or whatever products need to be kept out of your child's diet. If you find a brand that's right for your family, be sure to ask your local retailer to order if for you. Chances are ther are other kids in your area that would be happy to buy it, too.

One company that boasts fun, all-natural, allergen-free Halloween candy is Indie Candy. All products are "Big-8 Allergen Free" and corn syrup-free. Indie Candy's Halloween line offers: gummi candy, hard candy lollipops, and chocolate lollipops, in designs from frankenstein to jack-o-lanterns. Indie Candy also makes organic cotton candy that is allergen-free. 

Other companies offer goodies that make good candy alternatives. The website Allergy Free Shop offers candy/treats like Welch's Berries & Cherries Fruit Snacks that are free of wheat, gluten, egg, dairy, cassien, soy, peanuts and tree nuts. Welch's products are often easy to find at a lot of mass retailers, including Jewel and Woodman's.

Glee Gum is another product offered at the Allergy Free Shop, on the Indie Candy site and at many retailers. Glee Gum contains no gluten, is safe for people with celiac disease and does not contain any of the eight major food allergens: milk, egg, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts, or soybeans. However, all three flavors of Glee Gum contain glucose derived from corn, which may not be safe for individuals with corn allergies.

What other great Halloween treats have you found for kids with allergies?