These Are The Symptoms Of The Delta Variant To Watch For In Kids
As if the coronavirus weren’t bad enough, this new Delta Variant is even MORE contagious, and is taking people out left and right.
Top U.S. health officials are saying that it’s best to be vaccinated, but now a third booster dose of the vaccine is about to go into people’s arms starting in September.
It is the hope that this “booster” will carry us through cold and flu season without too much trouble, but we will wait and see what happens.
The immunity that the vaccine affords the adults and teens who can get it is great, but what about the children who aren’t eligible for the COVID vaccine?
Way back when this whole mess started, they were saying that kids weren’t immune to the virus, but the length and severity of the symptoms were not as great as their adult counterparts.
But then, the virus mutated into what is now known as the Delta Variant, and all bets were again off.
New cases in children are up 85% in recent weeks, prompting groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to send a clear message: Delta is different.
Yahoo News
But, WHAT is different? Do the symptoms still look the same in children who contract this Delta Variant?
The MAIN symptoms are still the same ones we have been seeing all along.
Fever, cough, congestion, gastrointestinal issues, and a loss of taste or smell. Among those, fever and cough appear to be especially common in children.
Yahoo News
Of course, those aren’t the extent of the symptoms that are being seen, but those are really the ones to look out for.
One of the scary things is that they are seeing more and more pediatric cases in hospitals across the nation.
Just a few weeks ago, we hadn’t been seeing any kids in the hospital. Now, every day, I have one or two.
Dr. James Schneider, chief of pediatric critical care at Cohen Children’s Medical Center in New Hyde Park, New York
Hospitals and doctors are seeing that about 15% of the cases that are coming in now are children.
They are also saying that up to 40% of children who have the virus are completely asymptomatic.
That means they are still carrying the virus, and can totally pass it on to someone who WON’T be asymptomatic.
This is why they are still pushing masks so heavily — especially in schools.
The masks help prevent the spread of asymptomatic people — people who may not even know that they are contagious.
Because the Delta Variant is spreading like wildfire, more kids are getting the virus than they were previously.
It doesn’t seem to be that it’s causing kids to get sicker; it’s just causing many more kids to get sick.
Dr. James Schneider, chief of pediatric critical care at Cohen Children’s Medical Center in New Hyde Park, New York
So, please stop complaining about wearing the mask or mask mandates, especially in school.
It’s critically important that kids — vaccinated or not — wear masks indoors and in school.
Dr. James Schneider, chief of pediatric critical care at Cohen Children’s Medical Center in New Hyde Park, New York
More kids are getting the virus than ever, and we don’t want them passing the virus around like the common cold. (Have you ever had a kid in preschool? They are ALWAYS passing sicknesses around!)
We also want to protect the vulnerable population. Sure, many of them have been vaccinated, but they can still get a breakthrough case.
I sure don’t want to be the cause of someone getting a life-threatening illness! Although I have been vaccinated, I will gladly still wear a mask to help cut down on the spread.
