OK, let's face facts: the report of the 4-yo boy in New Jersey who died of Enterovirus 68 in his sleep after not seeming that sick at bedtime is pure parental terror.
I found myself not even able to recap the story to my wife at lunch today without choking up. Then I went to wash my hands.
And if ever there were a flu season where everyone, especially kids and those around them, should be vigilant about washing their hands, it's this one. When there's an especially powerful virus circulating, that potentially comes with a chaser of debilitating neurological injuries, and that hits toddlers and the tiny especially hard.
And yet the rules for avoiding flu and cold transmission apply, and are currently the most immediately effective prevention strategy. So let's not wait til a weekend to start this freakout; let's begin now, and we can end, oh, let's say we end in June? Is June good for you?
After Death of New Jersey Boy From Enterovirus 68, Worry Grows Among Parents [nyt]
