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Kids Bounce Houses Spreading Horrific Staph Infections To Children

Smarter Reviews Looks at a Recent Outbreak of Staph Infections

As a parent, you would do anything and everything in an attempt to keep your children safe, but you also want them to have fun and enjoy their childhood.

As such, you try not to hover over them much whenever they're doing something fun like attending a birthday party or some type of other festival or celebration.
Sadly, the time may be right to start paying closer attention to kid gatherings.

You might be surprised to learn that your family could be in jeopardy, especially where it pertains to the health of your kids. This is especially true if your kids typically enjoy playing around in bounce houses or do so at birthday parties.

Bounce Houses Pose Significant Risks

There is no doubt that bounce houses can at times post significant risks to the overall safety and wellness of children. However, it might not always be for the reasons that you are thinking about. It turns out they just might be dangerous.

Almost everyone has seen one of these "bouncy houses" become airborne and fly across a large swath of land because it wasn't tied down properly. That is scary enough on its own, especially when you consider the fact that in many of these instances, there were children in the bounce houses at the time that it happened.

However, the reason for this particular story brings about an entirely different problem associated with bounce houses and one that is nothing short of terrifying.

Many children are now suffering from staph infections as a direct result of playing in bounce houses, in a new epidemic that is taking the medical world by surprise.

The truth is, this is not only a frightening problem in terms of public health, but it could be an absolutely deadly one if your child doesn't get the professional medical care that he or she needs right away, assuming your child experiences an outbreak.

The Dangers of Staph Infections

There are many dangers associated with staph infections. In fact, this is one of the most dangerous viral infections known to human beings and it can be absolutely deadly under the right circumstances, as the outbreak spreads and worsens.

The truly frightening thing about it is that it is capable of spreading an outbreak in record time. This means that if the infection is present on a bounce house that your child has been playing on, it is possible for many of the children that were playing that day to end up with the same staph infection, in the same amount of time.

Unfortunately, this is an infection that can spread throughout the body very quickly and it causes a whole host of other problems. Internal organs can become infected and eventually, the blood itself can become infected as the body becomes septic.

At this point, the infection is virtually impossible to stop. That is why it is so important that it be dealt with quickly and aggressively with medical precision.

Be Sure To Ask The Company About Cleanliness

If you still want your child to be able to enjoy playing in a bounce house but you are concerned about the presence of a staph infection, what are your best options?

First and foremost, make sure that any company you hire to provide a bounce house is more than willing to answer a couple of questions about the overall cleanliness of their operation. Their cleanliness will make all the difference.

You want to be certain that the bounce house is cleaned after each use and that it hasn't been rented out again without being cleaned and disinfected adequately.

If the company you are talking to doesn't want to answer your questions or doesn't have any clear-cut answers, hang up the telephone and move on to someone that is capable of providing the answers you want. It's too great of a risk to take a chance.

Consider Not Allowing Your Child To Participate

As an alternative, you might choose not to let your child participate at all. Sure, it's not the most popular choice, but it's a viable one, all the same. It is one thing if you are renting a bounce house yourself for a private party, if it's all under your control.

If it is, you can stay in direct contact with the company you are renting it from in order to gain a better understanding of how frequently they clean the house itself.

That isn't always the case when you are attending someone else's party and it certainly isn't the case when you are attending a community festival or a school celebration that is utilizing these devices. You won't always have the information.

If you really have genuine concerns about the possibility that your child could be become infected with a staph infection from playing in one, your only other primary recourse is to refrain from allowing them to play/participate with the other children.

This might seem harsh but it could potentially save your child's life, especially if he or she has a compromised immune system or even susceptible to staph infection.

Don’t Hesitate To Visit A Doctor

If you do make the decision to allow your child to go ahead and play in a bounce house, there is certainly nothing wrong with that. The key is to be cautiously aware.

The truth of the matter is that it is virtually impossible to completely protect your child from everything that he or she might encounter, especially in group settings.

In reality, merely attempting to do so is likely to frustrate both you and your child, not to mention force your child to grow up with a somewhat sheltered upbringing.

However, it is important that you know what to look for in the event that you allow your kids to play in a bounce house, in case a potential problem starts to show up.

Look for a rash that can appear anywhere on the body, generally red in appearance. Eventually, this rash will start to ooze pus or a clear liquid. At the first appearance of the rash, you should take your child straight to the doctor and avoid any contact with other kids, or any home remedies that you might be inclined to try first.

This is critical because of the potential severity of the staph infection itself. The sooner medical treatment is started, the better the outcome will be, in all cases.

Final Thoughts

It's understandable that you might sometimes wish you could take your children and be with them all the time in order to protect them from everything they touch.

However, in the real world, it is essential that you allow your children to have experiences without you constantly being present. This is one experience that you might have thought of previously as being relatively innocuous and it really isn't.

Now that you know the truth, you will have to make the decision regarding whether or not you plan on allowing your children to continue to play in a bounce house. If you decide to allow it, know what to look for and don't be afraid to take action immediately if something seems amiss. You just might save your child's life.