Children haven't yet built up antibodies to the dozens of cold viruses out there, so doctors don't think it's a cause for concern if a preschooler gets multiple colds a year. Children up to 2 catch 8 to 10 colds on average, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. And 2-year-olds in day care get more colds than two-year-olds kept at home. But those day-care kids get fewer colds by age 6, when they're in kindergarten or first grade, a University of Arizona study has found (presumably because the ones who get viruses earlier in life build up immunity earlier). By age 13, both groups of kids are about equally immunized against cold viruses, the study said.
So should you forget your worries about your child's ill playmates? Not exactly. Doctors agree it makes sense to take extra precautions to keep small babies away from other children who might have colds. "Their immune systems are still pretty underdeveloped," explains Clemens.
Up to age 1, babies can have a harder time dealing with colds than older children do. "Young infants are what we call obligate nose-breathers," says Wendy Gladstone, M.D., a pediatrician in Exeter, New Hampshire. "They don't breathe through their mouths except when they're crying." So they have trouble dealing with a stuffed-up nose, and they may find nursing almost impossible.
All that nose-breathing is one reason babies sneeze so often. Irritants like dust easily enter their nasal passages, and because their neurological systems are immature, they're highly sensitive to any type of irritation in the nose, Chamberlain explains. So parents shouldn't worry if a baby sneezes even as much as five or six times in an hour.
For parents of children whose colds often lead to complications, extra caution is justified. "Some kids shrug off a cold; some are miserable for days," Gladstone says. "Some get ear infections, and some don't. And there are kids who get an asthma flare-up every time they catch a cold. Their mothers know they're going to be up nights with wheezing and a cough, so it makes sense for them to be more worried."
Understanding is needed on all sides. That means doing your best to keep your child under wraps during the first few days of a cold, as well as not worrying too much if another kid seems to be oozing germs. It also means forgiving other parents for sometimes seeming paranoid about the common cold, and excusing yourself if you turn down a playdate because your child's friend's nose is running.
"If we didn't worry about our kids," says Gladstone, "we wouldn't be good parents."
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