There are lots of things you can do on Facebook. You can….
- reconnect with old high school friends
- keep tabs on what your family is doing
- play games
- buy chicken pox infected lollipops.
That’s right. Not only was there a Facebook page that was selling chicken pox infected lollipops, but you can also easily find a local “Pox Party” online too. A “Pox Party” is a place you can take your child to interact with other children who have chicken pox in order to expose your child to the virus.
So my first question to all this is WHY!? There is now a chicken pox vaccine. Both
of my kids have had it. Recently there has been a anti-vaccine movement and many parents are choosing to not vaccinate their kids. Therefore, back in the day, before the vaccine, I got the chicken pox when someone else in my classroom got it. Then it went through my house and we all became immune. Now that most kids are getting the vaccine, the kids that are not getting it, are having a hard time getting exposed to chicken pox. These parents want their kids to be exposed to chicken pox at a young age in order to build their immunity to the virus. So some parents are turning to these infected lollipops as a way to expose their kids.
All I can say is, “EWWWWW!” Giving your kid a lollipop licked by some stranger’s kid is just gross. There is just all kinds of things wrong with that. First of all, how do you know that you are getting what you paid for? Even if that kid does have the chicken pox, but what if they have something even worse on top of it? The extra bonus of hepatitis just doesn’t sound fun. Also the chances of getting the virus this way are really slim, so what’s the point? The chicken pox virus needs to be inhaled, not ingested. You also run the risk of your child being one of those who has to deal with complications due to the chicken pox. Some kids get pneumonia or skin infections and end up in the hospital. In addition to all this you run the risk of being arrested because (thank goodness!) this kind of thing is illegal! Yes, you can’t send anthrax through the mail and you can’t send the chicken pox virus either. Happy to say that the chicken pox lollipop Facebook page has now been taken down and it should be as this really is just gross and unsanitary anyway.
I understand these parents dilemma, but I don’t think that chicken pox infected lollipops and Pox Parties are the answer. What do you think?
Visit Elissa’s Website at Punk Rock Parents
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