to be livid that a doctor on itv has just advised chicken pox parties?

[peanutMD]

I bloody hate this!

Children suffer and can die as a result of chicken pox so why the hell is this advice still being dolled out?

[DontHaveAtv]

It annoys me too. My DD was very ill with chicken pox and if I had purposely taken her to a party to get her infected I would have hated myself for it!

[thebeesnees79]

what would you rather do? avoid getting it then have it as an adult??
My two had it, my eldest was 3 & youngest was 1 & they were poorly for 3 maybe 4 days but it was nothing major.
chicken pox is an illness that majority of kids have to get to build an immunity, its not like measles.

[Sirzy]

I didn't see that but I think suggesting that is very irresponsible

[Sirzy]

Beesnees - just because it is mild for your child doesn't mean it is for all. So many parents seem to be clueless as to the dangers of chicken pox.

If a parent makes the decision to deliberatly expose a child to an illness that is their choice but are they going to keep the child away from anyone else (especially those at risk) until they know if they have it?

accidental exposure to cp can't be avoided, deliberate can and should be avoided

[HoleyGhost]

It is endemic, dc will be exposed at some point. Given that is the case, it is sensible to vaccinate or manage exposure so that they are less likely to catch it at a bad time.

A bad time could be when they are pregnant themselves, when they have a new sibling or when they are otherwise ill.

[sandyballs]

My DD was also very poorly with chicken pox, wouldn't have liked to be responsible for inflicting it on her.

[thebeesnees79]

are you American? we don't vaccinate chicken pox in England. I had it at 3 months old and I am still here, I don't know a single person who has died from it. Small pox yes, my great granddad died from small pox at 34 years old.
Chicken pox is mild for the MAJORITY of children, not all but its rare to get complications and we need to be exposed to build immunity.

[Doodlekitty]

No he didn't. Holly mentioned them and he said they were a bad idea, especially for any adults involved who could catch it. He advised keeping children at home as its very contagious.

[threeOrangesocksmorgan]

yanbu

[WhatYouLookingAt]

its really very unusual to have serious complications from chicken pox. It does happen, but its rare.
There is an argument that its better to control when they get it than not, since its likely they will at some point. So why not let them get it at a time of your choice, rather than randomly, so maybe right before your long awaited holiday, or when you are due a baby, or whatever?
It's better to have it as a child than an adult too.

I'm not actually for the idea at all, but I can see why you might. And its up to the parents, they idea isn't a surprise chicken pox party.

[Wheresmycaffeinedrip]

To be honest school is one big pox party. By time you know your kid has It, its toolatee damage has been done. Parents have a choice whether to go along to an organized party no one forces them. Yes there is a very small chance it could be more serious as a child but majority of kids cope ok and as adults it is almost Garunteed it's gonna be horrendous.

[SoupDragon]

^poster Doodlekitty Tue 11-Sep-12 11:34:29
No he didn't. Holly mentioned them and he said they were a bad idea, especially for any adults involved who could catch it. He advised keeping children at home as its very contagious.^

So, the doctor actually didn't advise them and said they were a bad idea...?

[dubbada]

beenees vacc is available privately but not nhs due to lack of funds most eu countries vacc against it.

[thebeesnees79]

wheresmine my ds brought it home from pre school and passed it onto his sister. they were both ill in total 4 weeks but I am so pleased its over and done with. I am pregnant with my third baby and I would not want a tiny new born catching it so he will probably be exposed around 3 when starting pre school.
its inevitable that kids will pick it up at some point. best as a child than adult

[imnotmymum]

"What we doing today Mummy?"
"Going to a party"
"Great! What for whose birthday is it ?"
"No ones just taking you to be infected with an illness that will make you spotty, may make you feel poorly (My DD2 was very ill), you be all itchy that may leave scars and you will be patchy white and smell of calamine for weeks"
child

[Katienana]

They should have emphasised the point that once your child has chicken pox they are risk to pregnant women and the immuno supressed. The way they spoke about it made it sound like it is not a big deal and you can go about your business as usual.

[Doodlekitty]

That's what I heard. Will freely admit I was sorting washing at the time, but he defo said a very bad idea for adults who may not have had it and that children should be kept at home. If anyone were thinking of complaining I'd check itv player first

[valiumredhead]

No he didn't. Holly mentioned them and he said they were a bad idea, especially for any adults involved who could catch it. He advised keeping children at home as its very contagious

but followed it up with the face he thought they were a good idea.

[valiumredhead]

fact

[WhatYouLookingAt]

so its really really bad to catch chickenpox at a party but fine and dandy to pick it up at the supermarket? I don't get it.
If you're so terrified of the pox you can pay for a vaccine.

[diplodocus]

If you choose not to vaccinate I think there is some sense in managing exposure as they will be exposed anyway through school etc. and if they don't contracting as an adult is horrendous. Trying to ensure they get it at a time when they are healthy / don't have exams or other important life events seems to have some sense to me. Also I think there is a valid arguement in trying to get siblings to contract it at the same time - if one sibling contracts from another they almost always get a much worse dose.

[Triggles]

Not quite sure what being American has to do with it, regardless of whether they vaccinate for it or not. (we won't even go into my reasons for thinking the vaccination is a bad idea anyway) I'm American, and I don't consider chicken pox the plague. It's chicken pox. For the majority of children, chicken pox is a mild problem. But let's at least put this in perspective, for a majority of people, a cold is a mild problem as well. For some, it's not.

While I understand that some have a very bad time of it with chicken pox, I think that people are vastly over-reacting about chicken pox. And I certainly think being "livid" is an over-reaction.

[MammaTJisWearingGold]

I tell you what I would rather do. I would rather have the vaccine that is freely given in other countries given to our children here. I did not know about it until after all my DC had had it, but if I had known about it before I would have paid for them to have it. That is what I would rather do.

[sashh]

I don't know a single person who has died from it

I do. And I'm not the only person on mn who knew someone.

[LtEveDallas]

My DD was fine with CP, but I spent the first few days of her illness in a complete panic because I remembered vividly how ill my Dneice was when she had it - she ended up in ITU for almost a month and was off school (having just started at age 5) until around Xmas. To this day has a crap immune system that means she gets every illness going.

She was that ill that when she had her own child the doctor (on reading her notes) insisted that DGreatNeice was vaccinated in case it was hereditary.

CP is not a 'simple' illness for some. I would never avocate CP parties, can you imagine the guilt?