Babies are absolutely adorable and sometimes die because they can’t help being cute.

Sometimes when you see one, your hand, as if it has a life of its own, is reaching down to pinch the baby’s face. If the baby is even cuter, you have a moment of blackout and all of a sudden, you find your nose and/or mouth burrowed in the baby’s neck. The scariest of all is when your lips are on their way to a baby’s cheek and even though your brain is signalling you to abort all kissing operations, the kiss has landed!

Then you see the mom or the dad giving you death stares. Don’t take it personally when a mom or dad does this. You are, after all, a stranger. Even if you’re friends with the parents, be mindful that they are not aware of your medical history. Heck, you may not be even aware of the lethal germs you’re carrying around. You may be asymptomatically transmitting viruses like herpes simplex (HSV-1), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) rotavirus, flu virus, or bacteria like Bordatella pertussis (the one responsible for whooping cough). Remember, a baby’s immune system is not fully developed yet and won’t be able to fight off these infections.

HSV-1 infection can lead to herpes meningitis or encephalitis which can result in seizures, intellectual disabilities, vision and hearing loss. The viruses can also infect multiple organs simultaneously, including the liver, lungs and kidneys, and babies have died from these widespread infections.

Next time you see a cute baby, stop yourself from being an ignorant baby kisser.

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