Busting Halloween old wives' tales: tampered candy and marijuana

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- NBC4 Investigates is tackling some Halloween fears to make sure you are prepared, but not overly scared, for the spookiest night of the year.  

In just two days, the streets will be filled with little trick-or-treaters.  This is also the time of year when scary rumors go viral, but just how much truth is behind them?

There are two concerns that seem to go viral each year: fears of razorblades in Halloween candy and people handing out marijuana edibles to children. NBC4 Investigates checked in with area hospitals as well as Columbus police to see if this is actually happening. 

The data shows in the last five years, Columbus police have not received a single report of drugs or weapons in Halloween candy.  

It’s the same for Mount Carmel Health Systems; data over the last five years shows the number of children who came into Mount Carmel’s ER because of tampered candy is zero. 

"Every year it seems to pop up, this almost urban legend of people putting razor blades and other harmful objects in candy. And the truth of the matter is, we just don't see that," Mount Carmel Medical Director and Chair of Emergency Medicine Dr. Adam Heringhaus said. 

We also checked in with the Central Ohio Poison Center and again the data shows zero calls for help related to candy collected by trick-or-treaters.  

"That's one of those old wives' tale sorts of things," Central Ohio Poison Center Director Dr. Natalie Rine said.  

Now, that doesn’t mean there aren’t any things to look out for on Halloween night. 

"You want to take all of your normal safety precautions that you would do on any other night of the year, any other time that your child may get something from someone you don't know," Rine said.   

What Columbus Police and Mount Carmel are flagging is road safety: wear bright clothes, bring a flashlight and if you’re a driver, take extra precautions too.  

"If you do decide you have to drive in the neighborhood, just slow down. Right? Because kids are going to be running across the street without looking, especially in a neighborhood," Columbus Police Officer William Murray said.   

"The biggest risk, honestly, is kids getting injured while running around, either by falling down or falling off their bike, you know, potentially getting hit by a car. Those are real dangers. And parents need to be aware of them and properly supervising their children," Heringhaus said.   

For parents who are still worried, Murray has some advice that helps parents join in on the fun too. 

"You have to first get your parents' tax, so it's best that you check the candy first, make sure there's nothing in the candy, so if you've got to eat a couple of pieces, it's perfectly fine to make sure. But if you do happen to find something, give us a call and we will investigate it," Murray said.   

Again, in the last five years, CPD has not had a single report of candy being tampered with in any way.  

The Central Ohio Poison Center said children getting into marijuana edibles is not an issue during trick or treating. Usually, when kids get into edibles, they belong to family or friends. 

"Generally speaking, we have seen an increase of these exposures year to year, but this dates back to 2019 when medical marijuana was first legalized. Other states have gone before us in terms of legalization, both with medical and recreational marijuana and from data in those other states we were able to predict that this would be something that we would see a rise in these cases every single year," Rine said.   

She is emphasizing safe storage, especially during parties, so kids can’t get into your stash. 

"Just like any sort of prescription medication, over-the-counter medication that you wouldn't want your child to get into it best if you keep these products away and locked up with a lockbox would be a great example. But just making sure that they don't have access to those products, avoid using them in front of children. And I think one of the biggest safety tips is just avoid storing them in your pantry where they can get mixed up with other, you know, normal snacks or candies that the kids are used to getting," Rine said.