It’s a good few years ago but I remember that number one son stayed in for some weeks but he was a month early and spent his first couple of weeks in the Special Care Unit but this just wasn’t practical for Miss Marcus two and a half years later. It was summer and - as an active toddler - Master Marcus did not want to stay at home so we were out and about in days.
Apart from any other consideration it is pretty stupid trying to keep a baby away from strangers when their older sibling is bring a whole mass of bugs into the home - and insisting on hugging their little sister :smack:
Hit send too soon on previous post and edit timed out!
My mom’s in her early 60s, so there may have been a change in advice in over ten years; however, she also gave birth to her first child outside of the US in a much colder climate than the part of the States that we’re in now. It could have just been a super common sense notion to keep babies indoors in the fall/winter/spring in Iceland as a measure of not causing harm.
"I hear a lot of confusion and mythology having to do with the infant immune system and what it can and cannot handle. Many people believe that infants are born with weak immune systems that must be protected from all outside influences. According to one common misconception, the infant’s immune system is too weak to receive a Hepatitis B vaccine on the day of birth. Others believe that one should bring a newborn out in public because her immature immune system cannot handle the germs out in the world.
The truth is that a normal infant is born with a fully-functional, multi-pronged, ready and able immune system. It does not need to be primed or tested. It can be neither weakened nor overwhelmed by newborn vaccinations. It is capable of fighting off viral infections. It does not need to be “boosted” by anything."
Looking for actual information in peer reviewed journals is very difficult, I struck out.
Regardless, no matter what you or I say, nothing is going to change anyone’s mind on if they take their kids out or not right away. Making decisions that are comfortable to you is part of being a parent.
I just wanted to point out that there is no hard evidence. If there is, I can’t find it.
Just as babies are born with a full-length digestive system that simply stretches as the baby grows, they also are born with a well developed immune system that can produce a variety of needed antibodies. However, infants lack the memory cells trained to defend against specific diseases. Because of this, they are particularly susceptible to diseases such as diphtheria, whooping cough, polio, tetanus, hepatitis B, and Hib. This is an important reason why the recommended childhood vaccination schedule begins so early—to prevent the diseases that children are susceptible to at such a young age.
I work at a place where there are activities for moms with newborms. Bringing week-old babies is a bit unusual, but 2-3 weeks is very common. And the waiting is more often related to the mom feeling up to it than any fears for the baby.
I keep finding articles on this that dispute each other, so I’m not sure what the straight dope on it is. Makes sense to me to not make my own newborn (if I had one) a guinea pig- I’d just play it safe and keep him at home for a while. One of the dermatologists I work for used to be a pediatrician- I’ll see what he says the next time I work with him, on Friday.
Please don’t take children to public places if there’s any chance they might scream, knock things over, beg for toys, throw tantrums, or skateboard on public sidewalks. I’d say 22 years old might be the right time for a first outing, but only if the child is very mature.
Dweezil was out and about by the time he was a month old. Not so much before that, because I had a very difficult delivery and literally could not sit up for 2+ weeks (ate my meals either lying down, or draped over the arms of an armchair with the plate balanced on my tummy). I’d have been running around in public sooner if I’d had an easier recovery.
Moon Unit was not out and about much until she was about 2 months old. That was an artifact of her being a preemie - higher risk for respiratory infections. Plus the first 2 weeks home were a nonstop blur of brief nap, wake up, try to nurse, give up, give her a bottle, use the milking machine (breastpump), lather rinse repeat. SHe was right about a month old before she figured out how to eat and I was able to omit the bottle / pump steps, which freed up a HELL of a lot of time and made her a lot more portable once I felt she was strong enough.
Oh - and I did have problems with strangers attempting to paw her. Quite a lot, in fact. One stupid woman nearly lost an arm that way - she came up behind me and attempted to touch the baby in the sling, without a word to me. I managed to content myself with merely yelling “DON’T TOUCH THE BABY”. Honestly, it would never occur to me to attempt to touch a stranger’s baby. Friend’s baby? perhaps, with permission. But a stranger’s baby? WTF???
FWIW, that pediatrician recently defended a well-publicized malpractice trial. I personally think his advice in this case is probably correct, but some may question his judgment.
