The world is in crisis and uncertainty since March 2020. What should one do in such times? There are some guiding principles that can be used in such situations. The first is the principle of “do no harm”. We can take new steps in a new situation even without any evidence, but we must follow this guiding principle. The second is the principle of natural justice: We must prioritize the welfare of children, especially in times of crisis. Preferring children is a general tendency not only for humans but for all mammals. Have we followed these principles in our COVID response?
“A few weeks to flatten the curve” is how it started. Schools were closed for the children. Children were not even allowed to play among themselves. After all it was for the noble cause of “saving lives”. Over time, various governments have tried various methods to control the spread of COVID, including stringent lockdowns. But is there scientific evidence that various restrictions have had an effect on children? Specifically, is there evidence that school closures are beneficial? Have we followed the “do no harm to children” adherence over the past two years?
Fear for children, and a common myth
Unfortunately, fear rather than reason has been the basis of much of the world’s COVID response. There are two types of fear in the context of children. the first fear For Children: Will Covid affect our children? This fear is natural, and was justified in the early stages when we didn’t know much about Covid. But over time we need to stop and ask: Has COVID affected children? Do we know of any child in our circle who has been severely affected by COVID? Such examples are really rare.
In addition to our own personal experience, several careful studies have shown the same conclusion. An analysis of about two million children in Sweden showed that no child died of Kovid. We should note that Sweden had its schools open to under-16 children, including during the peak pandemic. Another recent study of German children showed a similar result: none of the healthy school-aged children died of Covid. In both the Swedish and German studies, even ICU admissions were very low for children. The risk of COVID to children is actually so low that according to US statistics, it is less than drowning accidents. Do we spend every day of our lives worrying about children drowning? So is the fear of being affected by COVID justified for children?
There is a common myth in this context that we Somehow the children have been saved from the virus by closing the school. However, various sero-surveys debunk this myth. Children in India are exposed the same way as adults: up to 75 percent by June 2021, followed by Omicron now almost 100 percent. It’s just that we didn’t even notice it, because children’s bodies haven’t had any problems fighting the virus.
Losses due to unreasonable fear
However, fear for children remains at unreasonable levels, even in places where we usually find reason. For example, a US Supreme Court judge recently remarked during a hearing that more than 100,000 children in the US were in critical condition due to Covid. Although she was far from the mark: only about 3,300 children in the US were in hospital with Covid at the time; Here too many children were in the hospital for someone else The cause (such as a broken leg or appendicitis) and happened to test positive, and was not hospitalized due to COVID. So the judge was off a factor more than 30. What is the effect of this level of extreme fear?
An analysis of US CDC data shows that in the year 2020, there was an astonishing 14 percent increase in deaths in the 15-19 age group, not because of COVID, but because of various harsh restrictions on children’s lives. Learning from this immense loss, move on another 10 months, the American Academy of Pediatrics had to declare a national emergency in child and adolescent mental health. The education of children across the world has been worst affected since World War II. As of September 2020, UNICEF estimated that 24 million children will never return to school. In India, 260 million children face an education emergency due to 700 days of school closures, the longest on the planet, surpassing 200+ other countries.
In this context, the statement “Jaan hai to jahaan hai” (life is more valuable than anything else) is not only simple, it is a cruel twist. Children are clearly not at risk from COVID, but are at a great disadvantage due to school closures and other restrictions. Not only this children’s mental health shattered, but their future is destroyed by the closure of the school. The link between illiteracy and poverty is well known, as is the link between the two with healthcare. It is especially known that the literacy of girls is extremely important for the health of the coming generation. therefore, school closedWith the direct aim of “protecting children”, is achieving just the opposite: causing extreme harm to today’s children as well as their next generation.
fear of children
The second element of fear and anxiety in the times of covid is the fear of children. Consider this: Recently, a mother in Texas (USA) put her 13-year-old son in the trunk of her car to “avoid being exposed” after her son tested positive. Is this level of fear of children acceptable? We can’t write off Mom as a “bad-apple,” as the episode gets worse: the judge concerned finds Mom “no reason to charge”. How is this justified?
Children’s playgrounds have been closed in many parts of the world including India; Many housing societies have made arbitrary rules against children’s play. Even as governments are willing to open schools, teachers’ unions have lobbied against it. At one time, innocent children were also held responsible for the death of old people. Is this ethical? What about the well-being of children, their right to a normal and enjoyable childhood? This society is eating its children, consumed by the fear of Kovid. Is this human too?
What makes children’s fears even more immoral is that such fears are not supported by evidence. There is in fact overwhelming evidence that schools are not super-spreaders, that there is no increased risk for teachers compared to other occupations. In addition, some studies also suggest that adults living with children have a lower mortality rate.
start school, stop loss
Thus there is an urgent need to end the harm being done to children in the name of COVID response. It is not that Covid has disappeared. it will never happen. But not all aspects of life can be centered around protecting against a respiratory virus. Importantly, important aspects of children’s lives cannot be centered around avoiding a virus that does not affect them. For this, we must immediately start school And all related activities for kids like sports, music, art etc. All-round education is essential for the physical and mental health of our children. This essentially means that we must prevent disruptive social distancing for children. This kind of distancing is harmful for children and it is of no use. All children deserve a normal childhood, just as all of us adults today enjoyed as children.
When it comes to schools, we should especially stop asymptomatic testing for children. Such testing also does not benefit children, and there is an irrational element of children’s fear, and increased anxiety. Thankfully, the recently announced testing policy of ICMR has already addressed this concern. Now it is the responsibility of the local health bodies to actually implement this policy.
And finally, schools should be Isolated from Covid Jobs for children. Current jabs are still under testing and its long-term effects are unknown. The NTAGI (National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization) clearly stated at the end of December 2021 that there is no need for COVID jabs for Indian children. Certainly, the scientific evidence could not turn within a few days to advance the exact opposite of this recommendation. After all, haven’t most Indian kids already encountered the virus and successfully fought it anyway?
To unite people around these goals, a group of us has launched the “Happy 2022, Happy for Kids Too” initiative, supported by eminent epidemiologists, pediatricians, other doctors, academics and lawyers. Have given. We invite everyone to join chain-for-children-cheer at happy22kids.org. Let’s start living for the children; It will be therapeutic after being in fear and anxiety for about two years.
Bhaskaran Raman is a professor at IIT Bombay. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent the stand of this publication.
read all breaking news, today’s fresh news And coronavirus news Here.
,