Share and Follow
Indeed, you’ve read that correctly! A recent study reveals that toddlers can encounter up to 19 illnesses during their inaugural year in daycare.
The curiosity of researchers from UCL, the University of Cambridge, Cornell University, and North Middlesex University Hospital was piqued by the frequent illnesses their own children faced upon entering daycare. This personal experience spurred them to delve deeper into the issue.
So, what exactly did the researchers uncover in this study?
Primarily, they discovered that a typical one-year-old child is likely to endure a significant number of infections during their first year in daycare.
- around 12-15 respiratory infections
- two gastrointestinal illnesses (diarrhea and vomiting)
- one or two rash-causing infections
Dr. Leo Swadling, a co-author from UCL’s Institute of Infection, Immunity and Transplantation, shared insights with the Huffington Post UK. He noted, “Newborns initially have some infection protection due to antibodies transferred from their mothers, but this diminishes as they approach their first year. This reduction in immunity leaves infants, particularly those beginning childcare, more susceptible to infections.”
“It’s normal for children to get sick a lot because their immune systems have never seen these bugs before – but then nursery serves as a ‘boot camp’ for their immune systems, building up resilience for the years ahead.”
Children who attend daycare tend to catch more infections between ages one to five than those who do not. However, once both groups start school, children who attended daycare often have immune systems that are better prepared to handle germs, whereas the others may experience higher absentee rates.
The researchers say vaccination remains important in helping children manage illnesses, even at this stage.
“Vaccines are a key way to protect children from serious infections in childcare, so we encourage parents to keep their children up to date with all available vaccines,” Dr. Swadling stated.
Another downside for parents when children get sick is the stress of having to miss work to take care of a sick child. The researchers are hoping that with this study, employees will have some compassion for parents.
Co-author Dr Lucy van Dorp, an infectious disease genomics researcher in the UCL Genetics Institute, told the outlet that employers need to recognise that it’s normal for parents of young children to regularly need to take time off work to care for their children, and parents will also be more prone to getting sick themselves – but this will improve as the child ages.”