United States: An expert warns that kissing a newborn baby or can say an infant on its head can cause serious infections. Dr. Karan Raj, an NHS surgeon, shared this warning in a TikTok video after a survey showed that over half of new parents would let people kiss their baby.
Clinical Microbiologist at the University of Leicester Primrose Freestone told The Conversation: “Due to this, a baby’s immune system doesn’t develop fully with birth, meaning they have a higher risk of catching a serious infection.”
During the baby’s first three months or so, its innate infection fighting immune cells such as neutrophils and monocytes, are fewer in number than in the adult and in older children, so infections such as virus infections (cold, flu) that are usually less serious in older children and adults can be fatal.

As reported by the msn, one example of this is the herpes virus infection. Herpes can cause cold sores in adults but babies can become very seriously ill if they catch the virus. Most of the babies affected by herpes will cure if the virus only affects the baby’s eyes, mouth or skin and undergo antiviral treatment.
The virus does not cause any significant harm unless the infection affects the baby’s organs, and becomes systemic, which is much more serious and, in some cases, even deadly. Because the baby is more vulnerable to infection with herpes in the first four weeks of life, the younger the baby the more likely the baby is to become infected with herpes.
Group B streptococci (GBS), for example, cause infection in the newborn — who are, overall, more vulnerable as newborns to infectious bacteria than older children and adults — and this is especially true if the Streptococcus bacteria are intracellular (which enables the bacteria to survive and multiply inside host cells).
Most often, these bacteria live in their host’s gastrointestinal and genital tracts without any signs of disease. Sepsis, pneumonia, meningitis, and blood infections are caused by GBS infections in babies.
E coli strains not harmful to adults can also infect babies, causing pneumonia, meningitis and sepsis, all of which can be serious, says Lieutenant Commander Barbara Smith.
Parents of very young babies shouldn’t fear asking their visitors not to kiss or touch the child. It should not offend the visitor who really cares for the wellbeing of the infant, if they make the request.