I know what some people are thinking, “Aiya, so precious…can hang out with a dog but cannot with people. Dogs more dirty lah”. Long story short, because dogs don’t catch colds, humans do.
When you look at pictures of Liam, he looks strong and healthy right? Yeah, he does and I’m happy for that.
However, he’s still a preterm baby, which means his lungs had not been able to develop fully before getting born. Unfortunately once he’s born, his lung development slows down significantly, to the point that it will be a year before we’re confident he could fight off colds/flu on his own like an ordinary full term baby.
If he were to contract any cold now, not only it is bordering dangerous for him, it could also mean developing asthma when he’s older. That’s why we’re not really into bringing him out although, trust me I really want to get out of our house, go shopping and attend parties (especially children’s parties!).
I mean, we live in a society where people think it’s heroic to go to work when having a cold. People that cough and sneeze without covering their noses/mouths and people that don’t wash their hands regularly. The scariest of all is that most people don’t even know that they are carrying cold viruses until they develop running nose and coughs, by then it’s too late already.
So yeah, don’t give me the stink-eye for keeping my bub in.
Also, dogs don’t smoke. Preemie lungs are incredibly sensitive to cigarette smoke, that should a smoker wants to visit a preemie, he or she would have to shower and change into fresh clothes! That’s because the smoke and chemicals could paralyse the microscopic hair-like structures in immature lungs causing SIDS (Sudden infant death syndrome), asthma and other respiratory issues. In fact, cigarette smokes are as bad for full term babies for the first few years of their lives.
I was a smoker and have quit for almost a year. When I was still smoking, I used to think Malaysia was so awesome cause we could smoke anywhere as long as it’s outdoor or in kopitiams (cheap cafe restaurants with cheap food) and used to pooh pooh parents who were bitchy about wanting to hang out in smoking places. Like, “Hello, if you’re scared of cigarette smokes than don’t hang out here lah wtf”.
Well, now it’s back biting me in the ass cause now I finally understand.
The fact that I can’t eat outdoors to enjoy a breeze or at kopitiams for a few years when Liam’s with us because people could just nonchalantly light up piss me off. I hope Malaysia will be like Singapore or England soon, where smoking bans whether indoors or outdoors are strictly enforced. I hope smoking will be stigmatised in Malaysia, I truly do.
Dogs on the other hand, they bring in faunas, germs and “dirts” that could strengthen his immune system. I’m not making this shit up, it’s been documented since at least year 2002. Here’s another more recent article from Time extolling the virtues of having children with pets (btw dogs are scientifically proven to be better than cats, hehehe).
So I apologise for being anti-social, for being unexcited about visitors and for preferring dogs over people. But I’m not sorry about it.
I agree wholeheartedly.
My wife never understood why I brought a dog home when both our boys were 6 and 3. They were having asthma and having a single coated dog around gave their bodies the catalyst to strengthen their lungs and their immunities.
There’s an old Chinese saying I can’t remember how to pronounce it but it goes something like “a drop of poison a day will make you immune to it one year from now”.
I suppose your wife was just concerned about her kids. I hope you managed to change her mind. All people need is education. It’s when people refuse to get educated and willing to lazily believe old wives’ tales that’s causing all the problems.
Yes, I agree totally….
Dogs & babies goes well…
You must fight the bias & fallacy that having dogs around the baby causes the baby to have asthma…..
What nonsense….
There are children who are just allergic to animals thanks to genetics but in general, dogs do strengthen kids’ immune system.
Liam is so cute :D Should come with a heartbreaker warning!
Hahaha thank you!
I totally echo your sentiments…
Unlike you, I’m not a parent but a total anti-smoker. I find it such a pity that that smokers (or ex-smokers in your case) only start developing a conscience (or become “educated” when they start procreating and thinking about how the toxic fumes they emit (or emitted) affect the environmnent and the surrounding PEOPLE, I am also fervently hoping for the day that Malaysia vehemently bans smoking in cafes and restaurants, or at least outdoor spaces. Smoking is such an irrefutably selfish act that not only affects the individual but more importantly the surroundings and people. And I do applaud Singapore and other countries which strictly enforce anti-smoking bans in many places.
I don’t intend for this to become some anti-smoking campaign, but since I work in a public hospital, I thought it might be worthwhile to share how prevalent smoking is in the Malaysian hospital which is supposed to be SMOKE-FREE, just because it pisses me off (more so because I cannot stand the smell of tobacco, I literally start making faces, pretend hyperventilating and walk the other way)— despite the anti-smoking sign and the threats of RM1000 fine, people smoke in the car park (of the hospital), the lift, patients sneakily smoke in the bathrooms (because the government is too cheap to install smoke detectors), the public and patients smoke in the stairways (AGAIN, because the government is too cheap to install smoke detectors)
Btw cigarette smoke does not paralyse the microscopic hair-like structures in immature lungs, it causes bronchospasm, which is an entirely differently thing
Anyway, just my 2-cents, don’t shoot me for speaking my mind….
Better late than never, eh? Empathy is not easy whenever it involves addictive substances such as drugs and yes, ciggies. As for bronchospasm, I meant to say an entirely different sysmptom altogether – tar from 2nd hand smoke does paralyse cilia (the microscopic hair like structures mentioned) in lungs, by having tar sticking to them. Of course, there’s no denying of broncospasm being a main concern too. I appreciate your sentiments and I agree with everything. Just like to point out as much as a scumbag I was, never smoked in front of children (albeit begrudgingly lol) and in places like hospital.