If you’re following the news lately, there are reports of increasing numbers of sick children in Chinese hospitals. Is this déjà vu all over again?
Allysia Finley, writing for The Wall Street Journal, tells us the World Health Organization on Nov. 22 said it is looking into media reports of Chinese hospitals overwhelmed by sick children. Chinese authorities attribute the surge to higher circulation of seasonal bugs like the flu and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV. The reports have raised concerns about a potentially novel pathogen spreading in China and renewed suspicions about Beijing’s lack of transparency.
“It is not at all clear when this outbreak started as it would be unusual for so many children to be affected so quickly,” the International Society for Infectious Diseases’ Program for Monitoring Emerging Diseases reported. Should we be worried?
It isn’t surprising that respiratory viruses—suppressed by nearly three years of Covid lockdowns—would come back with a vengeance in China amid low levels of natural immunity. Children are especially susceptible to bugs their immune systems have never encountered, and there are hundreds of them. It’s also possible that lockdowns and mask mandates impaired children’s immune development, making them more vulnerable to viruses that usually cause mild cold- and flu-like symptoms. Regardless, China’s crowded hospitals are more evidence that there are far more dangerous pathogens than Covid for children.
What about in the U.S.? Public-health experts in the U.S. are raising alarms about hospitals being flooded by kids with Covid. A Nov. 21 story in Scientific American claims that children younger than 4 years old have “among the highest rates” of Covid hospital admissions because their parents haven’t gotten them vaccinated.
It’s true that hospitalization rates for young children are currently higher than for adolescents and young adults, but they are significantly lower than for seniors. Yet infants are predominantly being hospitalized—not toddlers—and many are also infected with other, more-dangerous respiratory viruses. Infants younger than six months aren’t eligible for Covid vaccines anyway.
Infant hospitalizations for RSV, a common-cold virus that can impair babies’ ability to breathe, are currently seven to nine times higher than for Covid. For toddlers, it’s 17 times higher. The Food and Drug Administration in July approved a monoclonal antibody by AstraZeneca and Sanofi that prevents severe RSV infections in infants.
Demand for the prophylactic has been off the charts, resulting in shortages and rationing. That goes to show that parents don’t oppose vaccines and medicines that protect children from actual menaces. They simply have a better understanding than condescending public-health experts of what those menaces are.
Finley says, “The public health and political left’s zealous promotion of Covid vaccines for children may stem from a well-meaning desire to protect them from minor discomfort. Ditto mask mandates, padded playgrounds and trigger warnings. But shielding kids from every unpleasant physical and psychological feeling isn’t realistic or healthy.”
Every doctor knows that germs can, in fact, be good in some instances. Exposure at a young age to bacteria and allergens reduces the risk of asthma, allergies and some autoimmune disorders. It’s also well-documented that children who grow up on farms or with pets are less likely to develop chronic immune ailments. Scientists posit that germs train a child’s immune system not to overreact.
This certainly suggests that school closures to “protect children” may not have been a good idea. Mask mandates may have also contributed to this current surge in respiratory illness. They were largely ineffective at stopping the spread of Covid, yet they reduced children’s exposure to a potpourri of germs that strengthen their developing immune systems. We are all aware of the downside of overprescribing antibiotics, which may alter the normal flora of the intestinal tract. This raises the risks of allergies, celiac disease, and even obesity.
Many well-meaning parents want to shield their children from all pain and discomfort. But these serve a useful purpose. Adversity builds character, resilience, and determination. Nowadays, however, many schools are eliminating homework and letter grades in the name of reducing stress. Academic requirements are being lowered by schools for the same reason, while instructors are directed to accommodate students’ anxiety. None of this is good for developing young minds and character.
Finley says, “Is it any surprise, then, that 47% of 18-to-34-year-olds say they’re so stressed most days that they can’t function? The problem isn’t that young people are overly stressed. It’s that they haven’t been stressed enough! Children were once taught that “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Being taunted is difficult, but we can learn to shake it off. Now schools teach that mere ideas can be dangerous because they can cause discomfort. Better, they say, to avoid such threats altogether.”
When youngsters are eventually forced to leave their bubbles, they break down. Offices of mental-health professionals are teeming with psychologically fragile young people who have been protected their entire lives. Likewise, Chinese hospitals are flooded with sick children who have been sheltered by three years of lockdowns. Protecting kids from life’s troubles leaves them more vulnerable, not less.
