Is it too early to go shopping with a 5 month old?

Question

My husband is a pediatrician (resident). And he sees so many sick babies at his job in the hospital. So he is way too careful where we can go with the baby. So i didnt go shopping for 5 month now. He goes alone and buys too much stuff allways. LOL. But now we have to get some new clothes for her, and i would like to go too. There is allways a chance that she gets some bugs there, but until what age are we going to overprotect her? My hubbie says when she gets 6 month old, that is ok. I dont want to force it, because he really is worried, since the whole day he is taking care of babies who got some virus or something (usually when the parents went out with the child) and are seriously ill (like on vent, etc). What do you think?

Thanks for the opinions. Just want to say that my husband is a very good pediatrician if its about someone else's child. But i guess you would be worried too, if babies would die in front of you. Of course not everyday happens and usually not from a common bug, but he does dealt with that too.
And we are going for a walk twice a day, and we have lots of friends, who come by. Usually they dont come if they are sick, or were sick. but you cannot avoid that in stores. Altough i suggested him, to bring some masks from the hospital and put it on our daughter. LOL
He is racing into the bathroom, when he comes home, and takes shower. And i dont sterilize every toy as he suggests, bcs i know she needs some "dirt" to get the immune system up. I think so too that its time to take her to shopping so tomorrow we will go.

Answer 1

Do some research of your own.
You see, overprotected immune systems may never actually develop well enough if kept inside for too long!
What is his basis for six months?
Ask other peds.
Get another ped for your child, b/c it's too hard for many people to be objective about their babies!
If your mom were your therapist... you get it, right?
I say, GET OUT THERE! Get this kid some sunshine! Get this kid some exposure-
but not at a huge, ill-ventilated mall, oh, he's right about that.
Just out to the regular little strip malls, whatever.
And always, think for yourself. Then compromise.
If you don't feel you have at least some modicum of control over your own movements through life, you are goign to resent and even hate him-
Tell him that. Thell him that's much worse than some bug!

Answer 2

honestly i think alot of the people who have left you some answers are worry warts i have had 2 kids and with both the day after leaving hospital i was out and about either shopping or visiting people, even people with pets in their house etc and both my kids were and are fine people always come upto us and want to look at them or touch them and i dont mind.... obviously if you can see the person is very ill and is coughing everywhere or something then i would ask them not to touch them.
with my second child i did not breast feed at all and therefor he did not get any immunities from me hes outside all the time and i take him everywhere with me and he is yet to get sick there is no point carrying antibacterial hand cream etc with you because if you are fenatical about having a too sterile environment you are the reason your child will get sick they need to be around other people even if they just have a simple case of the flu every now and then and dirt(not as a new born or anything anyway) and unfamiliar surroundings (to you or them) and they also need to get sick for their bodies to be able to fight an illness (hence the reason they get immunisations) immunisations are injecting your child with the illness wether it be chicken pox or measles so their bodies can learn to fight it... dont you think thats worse than a flu or a cough.... in all honesty i think it is worse for you to keep your child away from these things and a a paediatrician your husband should know that even though i can understand where hes coming from... you will end up with a VERY sickly child if you dont ( i know someone who done the same thing with all their kids and because of it they are always sick)
you will be doing yourself a favour by getting that baby out and about ASAP as much as you can but within reason too

Answer 3

Keeping baby in a bubble isn't good socially, andit isn't going to help her build up her immune system. I've been taking my daughter everywhere since she is three months now and she is a social butterfly. She loves babies and children. She loves the interaction that she gets when we go places. It is also good for you to get out. A working spouse or partner doesn't always understand what its like to be at home all day. I don't know how you have survived the last five months! Let the baby live. Getting colds is a natural part of life. Do what you can while your out to protect her, but don't keep her isolated. She needs the interaction. To be honest, your baby is more likely to get sick from your husband then from going shopping, because he is around sick people all day!

Answer 4

I took my preemie twins shopping when they were 2 1/2 weeks old...i didnt have an option........they needed things that i didnt have time to buy before they were born. Mind you after that i didnt take them out for a while (until they got their first set of shots) and my pediatrician said they should be fine just dont take them all over because of RSV.

I know your husband is a doctor so he is more apt to freak out over small things, but im sure he knows that everyone needs to be exposed to germs or they will not develop a proper immune system and they will end up sick all the time anyways. Was your baby ill at birth? I dont understand him being that concerned about it...babies get sick...Mine have had a cold but they got over it! Not all babies end up on Vents!

Just be cautious and you should be just fine!

Answer 5

It's more than ok to take your baby shopping. If he is a resident then he should know that he probley has as many germs on him as the outside world does, because he is around sick kids all day. You can't keep your baby in the house all the time she needs to get used to different things so her immunity can build up. Keep her in the house too long then the first time you take her out she will probley get sick. Hope this helps. Kids get sick that's a part of life there's nothing you can do about it.

Answer 6

Im guessing he's not of the camp that early germ exposure is good to build up immunity. I would say at 5 and 6 months they're not going to be touching much, so it would be just the airborne stuff to worry about. Otherwise when I have older infants in shopping carts, Ill wipe them down with anti-bacterial wipes.

Now also Im not sure hows he's pinpointing that the baby got the virus "when the parents went out with the child" And frankly, I would think even with great handwashing, your baby is far more likely to catch something from him. As a resident, I wouldnt think his immunity is not that built up yet either.

Answer 7

Your husband should know better. With my first child (12 years ago) we stayed indoors for 3 weeks. With my 2nd child, who is now 4 months old, we were out of the house within 3 days to do necessary things like grocery shopping...people don't seem to realize that there are germs everywhere, even in hospitals! Being outdoors is good for babies and MOM. You must get out of the house. You will lose your mind if you don't...other posters are right, your child has to be exposed to build an immune system...maybe your husband should try another line of work, I can't imagine him telling a new mom to stay indoors for 6 months!!

Answer 8

If you isolate your child, your child will never build an immune system, then when he/she goes off to school and is confronted with the TONS of germs that are there, she is going to be terribly ill and won't be able to ward anything off. Just use common sense, wash your hands, put on hats if it is windy, coats if it is cold and let the child go out into the world. I was shopping as soon as I could. My husband was deployed and I had three kids, I took my baby out when he was 4 days old. Kids need to be around germs, they need to play and eat dirt, they need to get dirty and yes they need to get an occasional cold, flu or whatever to build up their immune system. Also your child should already be going for walks and getting fresh air. That is worse on your child than any germ could ever be. They have to have sunshine and fresh air to be healthy. You and your husband are doing your child much more harm than good. No offense but as a ped. your husband should know these things, I think he is just being a bit over protective since it is his child. Go to another doctor, one that won't be bias.

Answer 9

It sounds like your husband is being way overprotective. Since your husband only sees sick babies at work, it's probably a mental thing. A quick trip to go shopping won't hurt the baby. And most babies don't get sick by going out shopping with their parents, they get sick at day care. So go shopping, take the baby's stroller to make her more comfortable, and have fun.

Answer 10

You know when your husband or you go out you can also bring viruses and bugs home to him. And your husband probably brings home more germs than kicking it in your infant carrier in a shopping cart at a store. So maybe you should all quorinteen
yourselves until the baby grows up. JK

I would go a head and let my baby explore places besides the house. I'm sure you know all the safety precautions you can use. Wash hands, use hand sanitizer, don't get too close to people who apear sick and so on.