Anonymous wrote:I agree that masks on kids 5 and younger is ridiculous. Young children are at minuscule risk for Covid and if they get it, they almost always recover quickly. All adults can easily access a vaccine now.

Proving that is important because while children are far less likely than adults to get seriously ill, at least 268 have died from COVID-19 in the U.S. alone and more than 13,500 have been hospitalized, according to a tally by the American Academy of Pediatrics. That’s more than die from the flu in an average year.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that masks on kids 5 and younger is ridiculous. Young children are at minuscule risk for Covid and if they get it, they almost always recover quickly. All adults can easily access a vaccine now.

The incidence of confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection in people under 21 is about 1 in 300. About 1 in 150 of those with confirmed COVID were diagnosed with MISC, and about 1 in 100 of those with diagnosed MISC have died. That's 3185 MISC diagnoses in the USA at the last update, and 36 deaths of kids with MISC.

Small numbers, but if you are even remotely worried about the risks of blood clots with the J&J vaccine, you should be a helluva lot more worried about your kid getting MISC -- and note that twice as many kids in the USA have *DIED* with MISC as the number of people who have had blood clots after J&J vaccine (not died from clots -- just had confirmed case).

Of course, cases are still being investigated in both of these contexts, and numbers will be updated. But if you are cavalier about kids getting COVID, you should be more than twice as cavalier about clots and the J&J. (I'm sure some people are consistent this way. I wonder how many are not.)

While the incidence of MIS-C is uncertain, it appears to be a rare complication of COVID-19 in children. In one report, the estimated incidence of laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection in individuals <21 years old was 322 per 100,000 and the incidence of MIS-C was 2 per 100,000 [ 15 ]

[15] = https://www.uptodate.com/contents/covid-19-multisystem-inflammatory-syndrome-in-children-mis-c-clinical-features-evaluation-and-diagnosis/abstract/15

https://www.uptodate.com/contents/covid-19-multisystem-inflammatory-syndrome-in-children-mis-c-clinical-features-evaluation-and-diagnosis

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Anonymous wrote:It does bum me out that my 2 year old has to wear a mask at daycare. I want her and her friends to see each other's faces! And her teacher's!

Ok, but in the scheme of a global pandemic, that seems like a relatively trivial concern.

it’s really not minimal. it’s important to not do things just for show because they feel safer. that’s how we got into this whole mess with schools closed.

Sorry, your equating closing schools and your kid's inability to see friend's and teacher's faces is absurd. The former really impedes social, emotional, and academic development. The latter is kind of a pain.

And it isn't just for show. It is safer, even if risks are relatively low for kid's that age. But, when a relatively minor inconvenience can provide a real, even if minor, safety benefit, it should be a no brainer to do it.

DP. Yeah. If only there were some place in a schoolkid's life where they could be unmasked and interacting intimately with people who love them, other than at school, to get that need met. If only, if only.

It is developmentally appropriate for PK kids to interact with and form relationships with people outside of their family members.

Anonymous wrote:I agree that masks on kids 5 and younger is ridiculous. Young children are at minuscule risk for Covid and if they get it, they almost always recover quickly. All adults can easily access a vaccine now.

Anonymous wrote:Don’t listen to the PP. it definitely is sad and depressing. My two year old still wears a diaper and a sleep sack for nap. She cries at the sight of the mask and I don’t blame her. A two year old doesn’t understand “my mask protects you your mask protects me” garbage. She doesn’t know who dr. Fauci is and doesn’t care about my neighbor’s “thank you Dr. Fauci” sign. The WHO is right on this.

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Anonymous wrote:It does bum me out that my 2 year old has to wear a mask at daycare. I want her and her friends to see each other's faces! And her teacher's!

Ok, but in the scheme of a global pandemic, that seems like a relatively trivial concern.

it’s really not minimal. it’s important to not do things just for show because they feel safer. that’s how we got into this whole mess with schools closed.

Sorry, your equating closing schools and your kid's inability to see friend's and teacher's faces is absurd. The former really impedes social, emotional, and academic development. The latter is kind of a pain.

And it isn't just for show. It is safer, even if risks are relatively low for kid's that age. But, when a relatively minor inconvenience can provide a real, even if minor, safety benefit, it should be a no brainer to do it.

DP. Yeah. If only there were some place in a schoolkid's life where they could be unmasked and interacting intimately with people who love them, other than at school, to get that need met. If only, if only.

It is developmentally appropriate for PK kids to interact with and form relationships with people outside of their family members.

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Anonymous wrote:Toddlers learn empathy by reading facial expressions, so putting them in masks is not harmless.

It's not just my reading of the science, Google "world health organization kids masks" for yourself. The WHO guidance came out in August 2020, and for the life of me I don't know why the CDC hasn't even discussed it.

So it is harmful, and it's also accomplishing *nothing*! Toddlers don't spread the disease, and they don't get sick. They also aren't good at wearing masks?!

From what I can tell, DC and California are the only jurisdictions to require kids in masks. Maryland follows the WHO guidance, and while MoCo's mask order mirrored DC's, they've since removed the section for toddlers.

So, in terms of deference to medical authorities, Team "No masks on toddlers" has the WHO and 49 states, and pretty much the rest of the world on its side. The side suggesting masks on toddlers is DC Health and the CDC. And the CDC isn't pointing to any research or anything on toddlers. In the CDC's updated mask guidance, they completely omitted any consideration of toddlers. So, you can see why I find the balance of authority to be against masking toddlers.

Why do you keep saying "toddlers?"

My son is in PreK3, in person, and masking is a complete non-issue. He has a delightful day, made friends, loves his teachers, and is fully bonded with the group.

It's a colloquial use of the term. Some people use it to indicate children 4 and under, much in the same way that some people use "a couple of" to mean what I would call several, more than two.

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Anonymous wrote:It does bum me out that my 2 year old has to wear a mask at daycare. I want her and her friends to see each other's faces! And her teacher's!

Ok, but in the scheme of a global pandemic, that seems like a relatively trivial concern.

it’s really not minimal. it’s important to not do things just for show because they feel safer. that’s how we got into this whole mess with schools closed.

Sorry, your equating closing schools and your kid's inability to see friend's and teacher's faces is absurd. The former really impedes social, emotional, and academic development. The latter is kind of a pain.

And it isn't just for show. It is safer, even if risks are relatively low for kid's that age. But, when a relatively minor inconvenience can provide a real, even if minor, safety benefit, it should be a no brainer to do it.

DP. Yeah. If only there were some place in a schoolkid's life where they could be unmasked and interacting intimately with people who love them, other than at school, to get that need met. If only, if only.

Anonymous wrote:Where is the updated MoCo mask guidance? Here it still seems to say masks over 2 as of 4/29?

https://montgomerycountymd.gov/covid19/face-coverings.html

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Anonymous wrote:It does bum me out that my 2 year old has to wear a mask at daycare. I want her and her friends to see each other's faces! And her teacher's!

Ok, but in the scheme of a global pandemic, that seems like a relatively trivial concern.

it’s really not minimal. it’s important to not do things just for show because they feel safer. that’s how we got into this whole mess with schools closed.

Sorry, your equating closing schools and your kid's inability to see friend's and teacher's faces is absurd. The former really impedes social, emotional, and academic development. The latter is kind of a pain.

And it isn't just for show. It is safer, even if risks are relatively low for kid's that age. But, when a relatively minor inconvenience can provide a real, even if minor, safety benefit, it should be a no brainer to do it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Toddlers learn empathy by reading facial expressions, so putting them in masks is not harmless.

It's not just my reading of the science, Google "world health organization kids masks" for yourself. The WHO guidance came out in August 2020, and for the life of me I don't know why the CDC hasn't even discussed it.

So it is harmful, and it's also accomplishing *nothing*! Toddlers don't spread the disease, and they don't get sick. They also aren't good at wearing masks?!

From what I can tell, DC and California are the only jurisdictions to require kids in masks. Maryland follows the WHO guidance, and while MoCo's mask order mirrored DC's, they've since removed the section for toddlers.

So, in terms of deference to medical authorities, Team "No masks on toddlers" has the WHO and 49 states, and pretty much the rest of the world on its side. The side suggesting masks on toddlers is DC Health and the CDC. And the CDC isn't pointing to any research or anything on toddlers. In the CDC's updated mask guidance, they completely omitted any consideration of toddlers. So, you can see why I find the balance of authority to be against masking toddlers.

Why do you keep saying "toddlers?"

My son is in PreK3, in person, and masking is a complete non-issue. He has a delightful day, made friends, loves his teachers, and is fully bonded with the group.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It does bum me out that my 2 year old has to wear a mask at daycare. I want her and her friends to see each other's faces! And her teacher's!

Ok, but in the scheme of a global pandemic, that seems like a relatively trivial concern.

it’s really not minimal. it’s important to not do things just for show because they feel safer. that’s how we got into this whole mess with schools closed.

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Anonymous wrote:The WHO says masks shouldn't be REQUIRED for kids under 5 based in part on their ability to use a mask with minimal assistance. It doesn't say they shouldn't be worn.

This is incorrect. Here's the WHO's language:

Based on this and other factors such as childrens’ psychosocial needs and developmental milestones, WHO and UNICEF advise the following:

Children aged 5 years and under should not be required to wear masks. This is based on the safety and overall interest of the child and the capacity to appropriately use a mask with minimal assistance.