Seems like whenever
your child gets over a sore throat, fever, cough, or bout of diarrhea, he
immediately comes down with something else. "Children also catch between
four and nine colds a year," says Thomas Powers, M.D., a pediatrician in
private practice in Brooklyn, NY. "If you do the math, that’s about one
every six weeks." No wonder you may feel as though you spend more time
with the pediatrician than with your spouse! Children under 3 are
especially vulnerable: Their immune systems aren’t yet fully developed, so
they’re less capable of fighting off illness. And when they do get sick,
their symptoms can be more severe than those of older kids exposed to the
same viruses or bacteria. So it’s crucial to know the ailments your baby
or toddler is most susceptible to and when you should call the doctor.
