Are Children Coronavirus Super-Spreaders? Recent Studies Explain
That being said, some health experts do not believe that children are major super-spreaders but emphasize the need to protect them the same way adults protect themselves. “Children should physically distance, and those who are 2 years old and older should wear a mask. Children should practice hand hygiene correctly and frequently, just like adults,” agreed Dr. Jennifer E. Schuster, pediatric infectious diseases physician at Children’s Mercy in Kansas City, Missouri,.
According to the CDC, based on what health experts have been able to find out after 8 months of coronavirus, children do not appear to be at higher risk for COVID-19 compared to adults. However, “the more people children interact with, and the longer that interaction, the higher the risk of COVID-19 spread.”
If children do get infected, studies suggest that the chances of spreading the virus to other children and adults are 22,4 percent, compared to the rate of transmission of adults aged 30 to 50, which is 11 percent. In most cases, children would transmit the virus to other family members within the household.
All in all, “COVID-19 is a serious disease,” Schuster warned. “Although children are at a lower likelihood to have serious illness, many people in the community do get very sick. It is everyone’s responsibility to help decrease the spread of COVID-19, including children.”
