Colds and Other Kids

Hey there, J..

I know it can be hard when you have a great relationship (and baby-sitting situation) to bring up sensitive issues, but you do need to talk with your neighbor. You could bring it up in a non-confrontational manner to find out what she does for prevention or treatment. She might need some help in that area... especially if the family always has colds... and may be thankful of some suggestions or advice. I would approach it by saying something like "I went on-line to ask other moms what they do about kids getting colds all the time and got some suggestions like..." (it's a thought anyway). ;o)

In my opinion, the best way to prevent spreading colds/viruses is to wash your hands well after being in contact with the snot or things that have gone in mouths, etc. so I think it would be a good time to teach the other children the importance of cleanliness if they don't do that regularly already. Using hand sanitizer like Germ-x helps as well (use only things with alcohol base, NOT Triclosan).

Another thing to remember is that pushing clear fluids, like juice and water, is important when the kids have infections so their little bodies can flush it out of their systems much more quickly.

When my little boy gets sinus infections or colds, it invariably leads to chest congestion and coughing and then ear infections (hence time out of daycare for him and work for me) so I completely understand where you're at. I've found that making sure he is getting his daily vitamins (I haven't always been the best at that) has made a HUGE difference for his immunity... and letting him have as much vitamin C as he wants when he's got a cold seems to help as well. I buy a roll of those Daily C tablets and let him have all the "candy". He loves it because he doesn't think it's medicine and I know he can have them all because he'll just excrete what he doesn't need. Hope this helps... good luck! ~Nicki

Maybe disinfect everything with a solution of bleach water after you have watched her children. Unless her children have a fever they probably aren't extremly contagious. There are often other underlying causes such as allergies for runny noses. As long as the snot isn't green they should be alright to interact with other children. Maybe speak to her about it or don't exchange babysitting when you feel her children are too sick. It sucks having sick kids!

I tend to agree with the other mom. Runny noses do not mean they have a cold (all the time). My daughter has allergies therefore she has a runny nose. Its not a cold and allergies are not contagious. My daughter would NEVER go to school if that was the case.

Actually colds shouldn't be a reason to stay home. The incubation of colds is such that by the time they have sniffles, they were exposed to the virus at least a week ago. If I stayed home from work each time I had a cold or the sniffles I wouldn't have a job!! Fever, vomiting, diarrhea, yes thouse should stay home because the virus can still be shed in the vomitus and diarrhea and the time of illness. Just my 2 cents on our society being overly germaphopic.

I have that problem too. But my situation is a little different. I only have my three year old who has been in and out of hospitals since he was born. When he gets exposed to "colds" his turn into hospital trips. 7 pneumonia's, 5 strep throats, 5 Upper Respiratories, 1 RSV, 5 sets of tubes, tonsils removed and 4 cases of Bronchitis. He also has asthma and does not respond well to medication which is why he always needs to be hospitalized. My son means everything to me and it is frustrating to have your children get sick when they are exposed to other children that are constantly sick. He has contracted these ailments from the kids I watch daily, the kids across the street and just going places in general. Primarily from the kids I watch. While their kids just get sick, my child gets a one way ticket to the hospital. I use Clorox hard surface, I use anti-bacterial wipes and I use hot water when I wash my sheets with bleach. I sat down with my neighbor and told her as much as I love having her kids over, I cannot have them over when they are sick. With my in home daycare I have explained to their mother that if they are running a high fever, they cannot come. If you are good friends with your neighbor and you sit down and explain that you have a "great thing" going with her about the "swapping" of the children, but that your kids are easily susceptible (sp?) to different ailments she should understand. I know it is hard as you have to live by her, but if she is "normal & understanding she should understand that when they are sick they should not come over. I guess I am more laid back about it as I Know that when he gets into pre-school he is going to come home sick often. Hopefully by that time he will have built up some immunity to all of the diseases floating out there. Although I am not 100% convinced that this builds up their immune system. But regardless, I wish you luck and take care

Just remember, she may tell you they aren't colds. Some children with allergies get runny noses that don't run clear. Usually when my daughter has a cold it is clear and with allergies it isn't since her allergies cause sinus infections (not contagious) and she coughs because of the drainage. Just something to keep in mind since she may become defensive.

I was once one of those moms taking the runny nosed-kid everywhere-because if I didn't, she never would have left the house from age 6 mos.-18 mos. During this time, she ALWAYS had a mild cold. To make matters worse, she coughed continuously, but because she had cough-variant asthma. I got some nasty looks sometimes when she was actually only having asthma symptoms and not sick. So, it may be that these kids have asthma or allergies.

The positive side of my daughter being so germy as a toddler is that she now has an immune system of steel. She's outgrown the asthma, and has been sick only ONCE between age 2 and 4 1/2! So your kids may be building up immunities now and stronger later for it.

All this aside, I'd be straight with the neighbor, not in a judgmental way, but just letting her know that your kids tend to come down with things worse than other kids and that you'd prefer not to hang out when her kids were sick.