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My 4year old girl recently had chicken pox and asked me why it was so called i normally have an answer or else make one up to fit . but on this occasion i jus couldn’t .
Any real answers or suitably fitting fakes will do im sure you’ll have 1 lollyThere are many explanations offered for the origin of the name chickenpox:
* Samuel Johnson suggested that the disease was "less dangerous", thus a "chicken" version of the pox;
* the specks that appear looked as though the skin was pecked by chickens;
* the disease was named after chick peas, from a supposed similarity in size of the seed to the lesions;
* the term reflects a corruption of the Old English word giccin, which meant itching.(Wikipedia)
what I found interesting [sad case that I am] on looking it up is that, if you have chicken pox as a child, having more exposure you have to the virus gives you a protection against shingles in later life..acts as a sort of booster to the immune system; worth knowing as a lot of older people avoid children with chicken pox for fear of catching shingles from them.
Drone i think i’ll take the samuel johnson route many thanks
Moehat thanks for the infowhat I found interesting [sad case that I am] on looking it up is that, if you have chicken pox as a child, having more exposure you have to the virus gives you a protection against shingles in later life..acts as a sort of booster to the immune system; worth knowing as a lot of older people avoid children with chicken pox for fear of catching shingles from them.
True. It’s a common misconception you can catch shingles from someone with chickenpox. Shingles is no more than a nastier recurrence of the chicken pox you yourself caught as a child (or whenever) due to the immunity wearing off.
Exposing yourself to those with chicken pox to boost the immune system against shingles is no different to the jab-provided immunity boosters for other viruses e.g the ten-yearly Tetanus jab.
So for all those of a certain age: make a point of visiting the junior members of your clan when they are poxy.
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Shingles is far removed from a ‘nastier version’ of Chicken Pox, Drone. It’s a reactivation of the original virus and directly effects nerves, nerve endings and the areas of skin which those nerves serve.
As for suggesting that adults should expose themselves to the virus as a boost to their immune system, I sincerely hope you’re not a GP. Doing so having not had Chicken Pox is bordering on ridiculous, but it’s not unheard of for the virus to be contracted a second time and complications in older people are far more common – the most prevalent being pneumonia.
I think the ‘giccin’ one is correct [this is like Call My Bluff]; I’m going to find out more about the shingles connection because it’s something I quite live in fear of getting, from seeing what it can do to people. My mum died soon after suffering from it
. A friend came down with ME soon after having shingles as well. Of course, anyone who thinks they may have shingles should go straight to a GP because the sooner anti viral treatment is started the better.
Shingles is far removed from a ‘nastier version’ of Chicken Pox, Drone. It’s a reactivation of the original virus and directly effects nerves, nerve endings and the areas of skin which those nerves serve.
As for suggesting that adults should expose themselves to the virus as a boost to their immune system, I sincerely hope you’re not a GP. Doing so having not had Chicken Pox is bordering on ridiculous, but it’s not unheard of for the virus to be contracted a second time and complications in older people are far more common – the most prevalent being pneumonia.
I’m quite aware what shingles is, though on a racing-orientated message board I thought a full description of the diagnosis, etiology and symptoms a little superfluous. Nastier than chicken pox it certainly is.
You are correct when you say those who have not had chicken pox as children should not ‘make an effort’ to catch it as adults, because as a general rule the older you are when you first get chicken pox the worse the symptoms are; hence the wise idea of trying to infect children with the virus when young at the ‘chicken pox parties’ mentioned by Ethan.
Those who have not had the pox can also catch it from those ill with shingles but not vice-versa, which was the point Moehat and I were making: shingles cannot occur without having had chicken pox first and for those who had the pox as youngsters (the large majority) re-exposure to the virus in later life reduces the chance of contracting shingles.
Generalisations are dangerous but in this case given the small percentage of adults who have not caught chicken pox as children and the vanishingly small percentage of those who contract it for a second time, I think my advice was generally (ha ha) sound.
My daughter got it as a 4yo and didn’t trouble her unduly thank goodness.
However her American cousins were routinely vaccinated against it and their parents think it very odd that we just catch it (and actively try to get out children to catch it).
Hi Wee man.
Feeling itchy are we?
Hopefully the boy will get it aswell. I dont mean that in a nasty way, but at least its out of the way.
Your Mrs bought a new wardrobe yet???
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