AIBU to take my toddler out with a cold?

[Billynomatesonhere]

My LO is 18 months old. Up until now I’ve kept them away from playgroups / classes / play dates if they have had a bit of a cold or runny nose.

But I’m wondering if it gets to a certain point where life just has to carry on for little colds providing they are ok within themselves?! LO keeps getting colds so must be picking it up from the activities we do!

Lo has woken up today with a runny nose but is running around perfectly happy so wondering if we should just stick to our plans?

If we’d stayed home any time either DC had a runny nose but was otherwise happy, we’d have spent about six months of the year indoors. Even nursery say snotty but happy is fine.

I think it depends what it is. Nursery with other toddlers then fine- I’d steer clear of some of the all age mum and baby groups where you might get some newborns and young babies. The kind of thing run by church groups.

Ok thank you - my LO doesn’t go to nursery so I wasn’t sure what the rule of thumb was.

I agree that it depends on what you are going to. My baby is currently recovering from bronchiolitis which likely was picked up from someone with just a cold. I think if you are going somewhere with other toddlers it's fine, but I wouldn't go anywhere with newborn or really young babies who would be more vulnerable.

I would avoid really tiny babies but otherwise if they are well in themselves just go about your daily life.

New borns , pregnant women, vulnerable elderly and chemo patients etc are all vulnerable groups

otherwise crack on or else you will make yourself housebound

antibac hand wipes are great for wiping down the toys or surfaces that your child touches if you are concerned he is infectious

In addition to the above, a snotty nose could even be a touch of hayfever potentially, so might not even be contagious!

I don't think I've ever been to a softplay or toddler class in autumn/winter that didn't have a couple of snotty kids! Nurseries and schools would be empty if they didn't allow (or in the case of schools, insist) children with colds attend.

In terms of young babies, that's a risk for the parents to manage. With my first, I largely avoided softplays and playgroups when he was tiny. With my second, I largely wore him in a sling when he was very small, unless we were at a specific baby class. That way random toddlers were less likely to cough all over him (it didn't stop his big brother from bringing germs home though!). I wouldn't have expected parents to keep their children at home every time they had a runny nose just in case I came with a baby 🤷‍♀️

If mine needs calpol it's a stay at home otherwise we are going.

They'd never leave the house if you didn't take them out with a sniffle. Unless they have a high fever, d & v, or something like chicken pox, take them out.

Hayfever is quite rare at this age (18 months). Children are usually a bit older before it develops so it’s more likely to be a cold (or an allergy to pets or something else if it’s persistent, which doesn’t sound like the case here).

it is fine to take them outside for a walk if they’re up to it but don’t take them to indoor playgroups with other babies - that’s unbelievably selfish. you’ll risk making, say, 6 other families unwell just so your kid can listens to nursery rhymes in a group setting. Im not sure if you mean that kind of thing though or just out and about in general.

I was trying to remember how old mine were when they started showing hayfever symptoms. It’s amazing how soon you forget when they’re now an adult and towering above you!

If we stayed in everytime either of my DC’s had a cold / snotty nose then I don’t think we would ever leave the house.
I wouldn’t take them out and about if they were unwell with it / had a temperature. But a lot of the time it is just a snotty nose so yes we carry on as normal.

This. I would do the usual things or outdoor spaces, but selfish to do playgroups or child focused stuff where they could pass it on easier.

Considering 1-2 year olds consistently have colds I'd say it's fine! As long as you're not going with newborn babies, and yours is okay in themselves just a snuffly nose.. I'd never go anywhere with mine otherwise

I still take my kids to groups if theyre snotty but happy

Thanks everyone, it’s so hard as I don’t want to be that selfish mum spreading round germs but we pay for our classes per term so it’s quite costly to keep skipping classes every time LO has a snotty nose !

It could be hay fever.
This is their 2nd pollen season.
You could try the 1yr and over piriton syrup.

I agree snotty but well - avoid young babies or elderly, but other toddlers/kids is fine
Fever, achy, sickness etc, home unless HAS to go out e.g. doctors.

It’s a cold. I can’t believe you’ve been skipping things for a cold.