Is it 'better' to let them catch chickenpox early?

[wafflesmum]

We are meeting friends this week-end who said they have deliberately let their 5 month old mix with a toddler with chicken pox because they believed it was better to catch it early and it was milder in babies. They said although he has no spots he has had a mild fever and been more sicky. My baby is also 5 months. Should I be worried about her mixing with him? Would it be 'better' if she had it while very young?

If they catch it young and only have mildly they can get it again later on as the immume system is immature. If he has only juts been exposed he won't be contagious , if 10-21 days ago he might be about to go down with it and therefore pass the virus on.

I wouldnt knowingly expose a small child to chicken pox. Also having chicken pox under 1 year leads to a higher chance of them getting shingles as a child (normally seen in adults) - my ds had chicken pox at 5 1/2 months and developed shingles at age 3 which wasnt pleasant.

And if they get it when they are a little older, you can use stronger medicines to control the itching if they are bad - like Piriton.

And an older child is better able to both fight it off and recuperate more quickly afterwards.

I think this 'getting out of the way' is more for the parents' convenience - I personally think vaccination is a better way of dealing with that.

It sounds crackers. Most illnesses are worse in babies. Call social services now!

I definitely wouldn't want a baby to catch it, but IMO it's preferable to catch it as a child. DH caught CP in his 40s and it was horrible, really nasty and could have been a lot worse. DS caught CP when he was nearly 5 and it was all over in a week with only mild fever and a moderate scattering of external spots.

I don't think I would go as far as deliberately exposing DD to it, but now that she's nearly 3 I wouldn't be at all anxious if I found that she had been exposed.

5 months? That's cruel. I can understand not avoiding CP when the kids are pre school, but when they are babies? Mean.

DS at 6 has recently had a really horrible bout of CP and was in a fair amount of pain . I had it at 16 and it wasn't fun, but at least at that age you can distract yourself a lot more easily and your mum doesn't have to stay off work for 2 weeks to look after you!

With hindsight I would hope for the best for the preschool years and then pay for a private vaccination in the year running up to school entry, but I know that's not for everyone. Also I would have no compunction in avoiding children who might be infectious for as long as necessary tbh.

You can get vaccs?

Not on the NHS. It's part of the standard US schedule but not usually in Europe. There may of course be problems with it that I don't know about (for example, I think it's a 2-injection deal, which is a lot for a preschooler). I'd talk to the GP about it of course.

The reason it's not on the standard schedule here is I suppose because it doesn't cause complications and is generally a less serious illness than others. So it all depends.

Yeah, I didn't think it was very fair. Neither me or husband were keen but felt a bit of pressure as these are people who live quite far away, we haven't seen each other since the children were born and are unlikely to do so again for a while. Anyway, have decided not to go.

When did their baby mix with the poxy toddler? If it was within the last week then she shouldn't be infectious yet even if she is incubating it.

It's better to get it before your teens/adulthood as it's generally a lot nastier then. My attitude is that I'd pay for a private vaccination if my DCs haven't had it before secondary school age, but leave it to naturally occurring chicken pox to catch them before that point -- DS and DD both had it over Easter this year, at 5 and 2, badly enough to make me fairly confident they won't catch it again but mildly enough to pass with no significant discomfort and no scarring.

I have a colleague whose perfectly healthy 15 month old died from a rare complication of chicken pox, so while I am fairly relaxed about mine catching it I would never deliberately expose them. How would you ever live with yourself if you did that and they turned into one of the rare fatalities?

(the last week before you meet them, that is, not the last week from now)

I would never deliberately expose a child to chicken pox, especially not as babies. Once they're older it's hard to avoid and in any case is probably better if they get it as a child. My DS1 had CP aged 5 and my 2 year old DS2 came down with it exactly two weeks later. DS2 certainly suffered with it much more than DS1.

In Spain and other European countries you are offered it at 15m I think it was but you have to pay. Nurseries etc strongly suggest it, having just seen my friends dd going through an awful time (12m) I am glad my dd has the vacc. If the child by has not had it by 11 it is complusory here in Spain