From a parent’s perspective, many holidays have hazards to worry about. Who hasn’t picked up the paper during the winter holidays and seen a story of Christmas tree fire that destroyed a family home? And everyone has heard the Halloween tale (an “urban myth”?) of razor blades placed in apples.

While no one wants to focus on worries in the midst of celebrating, as hip, modern, “green” parents it’s our job to be informed. There’s so much information available – with the Internet at our fingertips, it’s our responsibility to know as much as we can about everything – right?

From the perspective of a parent of children with lead poisoning – an environmental illness that causes permanent damage to the brain and associated learning disabilities and other concerns – every holiday is seen through a slightly different lens…

What sets lead hazards apart from other concerns is that—as with nearly all lead hazards—exposure to holiday lead hazards is totally preventable. In fact – childhood lead poisoning is the most expensive* preventable environmental illness in terms of the impact on our country. It’s easy to protect your children from the many sources if you merely stay alert and do your “green parent homework”.

Following are some my rules for keeping my children safe during Halloween.

The greatest concern is with the items marked as “not intended for children.” If an item is sold as an adult costume or a house decoration it is likely not regulated and can – in some cases - legally have unsafe amounts of lead [and other toxic chemicals!]

• ‹ Are Your Baby’s Products Free From the Bad Stuff?
• Green Post-Halloween Tips ›