HEALTH ALERT. Ok for all you new mums out there..Ive just had a conversation with a friend who wasnt aware that sandpits in daycare centres are potentially germ infested. Under the current law in NSW ( unsure of any other states) daycare centres are supposed to change the sand in the pits every 3 months. Sandpits can harbour deadly bacteria such as Toxoplasma. You do not want your child to contract this. Unfortunately its easy to pick up. It only takes the faeces of one cat. That can happen overnight so even if the centres change their sand every 3 months, 1 cat makes it into the pit and the bacteria is there. If infected, your child will suffer almost no symptoms. A runny nose, a slight fever youll probably treat overnight with Panadol and forget about it. The parasite will lodge itself into your childs brain behind an eye and the complications associated with this, is blindness, brain damage, possibly schizophrenia or maybe even death. I have first hand experience with this as I myself contracted the parasite during the 16th week of my pregnancy and passed it on to my then unborn child, Ayden now 21. Hes blind. This is not something thats highly publicised and its a silent killer. If a pregnant mother contracts the parasite under 13 weeks gestation, that baby will not survive. If your baby is exposed to that parasite at your daycare centre, it only takes overnight to infect. There is no cure. Unless you catch the symptoms in the first 2 weeks and then it can be killed by taking good ole bactrim. I suggest you keep bactrim in your medicine cupboard for all those runny noses. Next time you see your doctor, confirm this. By the way, even the finest restaurants are not exempt from the parasite as its also found in raw beef. So your medium to rare steak may have it. Cooking the steak will kill it. Call Workcover Nsw on 131050 for more information regarding the sandpits and ask your centre how often they change the sand and make sure the pits are covered at night. Or alternatively there is an online enquiry form you can use to find out. Thats just one bacteria out of hundreds so its a serious issue that no one is told about. workcover.nsw.gov.au/contactus/Pages/default.aspx Ien.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Toxoplasma_gondii_tachy.jpg
Posted on: Fri, 31 Oct 2014 09:45:24 +0000