Hamilton County warns of Halloween food safety risks

Hamilton County's top environmental health official wants families to think twice about homemade Halloween treats and apple bobbing before trick-or-treating begins Saturday evening.

Jeremy Hessel, director of environmental health at Hamilton County Public Health, said commercially packaged, individually wrapped snacks carry less foodborne illness risk than homemade goodies. The agency published the advisory Oct. 27.

"It might seem like homemade cookies or sliced carrot sticks are good choices for Halloween, but handing out or accepting commercially packaged snacks would actually do a better job of reducing the risk that a child will become ill," Hessel said.

The concern goes beyond candy. Germs and bacteria can develop during home food preparation, according to the advisory. Unpasteurized apple cider can carry Salmonella. Raw flour or unwashed produce can harbor E. coli. Undercooked eggs in cookie dough pose a risk, too.

Symptoms of those illnesses include watery diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, dehydration and loss of appetite.

Apple bobbing, cookouts flagged

Hessel also warned against apple bobbing, saying the water and apples likely harbor pathogens that cause illness. He recommended families skip neighborhood Halloween barbecues as well, noting that handwashing gets overlooked and food sits out too long at unsafe temperatures during the festivities.

"Both activities present huge risks for spreading germs and illness," Hessel said.

Good hand hygiene helps, too. Hessel said washing hands before and after trick-or-treating and using hand sanitizer while passing out treats can reduce the spread of germs.

What to do with the candy haul

The health department offered several tips for sorting through treats:

Only accept foods securely wrapped by the manufacturer. Toss homemade or unsealed items.
Do not snack while going house to house. Wait until you get home and inspect everything.
Look for holes in packaging or individual wrappers.
Check package dates and look for signs of decay.
Contact a doctor if a snack tastes off or causes illness.