Do not kiss babies, you could save lives

"It's the season of colds and premature babies and infants, it's a particularly disturbing season. You may have heard about the recent trend of social media messaging, "Do not kiss my baby." Have you wondered what the problem is and why this campaign has become so popular? You may have thought that the parents' publications on this subject were excessively cautious and contained only germaphobes.

This article will show why the online message "Do not kiss my baby" has attracted so much attention and why it is actually a societal concern.

What is the VRS?

RSV stands for Respiratory Syncytial Virus. It is a common virus in infants and young children. At 2 or 3 years old, most children will have been infected at some point.

RSV infections tend to appear from fall to spring in temperate climates, such as Canada. For many children, RSV is a common winter condition, similar to colds. However, in the premature baby and children under 2 years of age, RSV can cause an infection of the lungs, resulting in the hospitalization of the child. It can cause pneumonia and, in the most severe cases, bronchiolitis in the first year of life.

What are the symptoms and consequences of RSV?

The symptoms can first appear in an infant in the following form:

• Fever
• Runny nose
• Other cold-like symptoms

RSV is a highly infectious virus. If your baby has these signs, see your pediatric doctor. In the adult, the symptoms are usually transmitted as colds.

Tips for keeping babies healthy this season

It is very easy to catch VRS, which exposes premature babies and children under 2 years to an even greater risk. To reduce the risk of transmitting RSV to a vulnerable child, consider these tips:

• Wash or disinfect hands regularly: VRS is a virus spread through physical contact, such as touching the skin, kissing or shaking the hand of an infected person. Do not kiss a baby, hold it or hug it.
• Do you cover your mouth when you sneeze: RSV can be transmitted through the air if an infected person coughs or sneezes, causing illness in the air
• Clean the appropriate surfaces if an infected person has been present: The VRS can live for hours on counters, doorknobs and other frequently touched surfaces by hand.
• In case of cold or fever, avoid children under 1 year: As premature babies and very young children are in danger of hospitalization and extremely dangerous illness. Be conscientious and do not expose the disease to a vulnerable baby.