Royals + Chickenpox = Bad News

Two of our beloved Royals are off the field after contracting chickenpox.

As the team (and the city) is in active preparation for a successful post-season, the news that 2 players are out due to a childhood disease is, well, a curveball.

Chickenpox is a vaccine-preventable disease that most children and adults no longer need to endure. The news of the virus infecting well-known members of the community should heighten our awareness that these serious diseases are still lurking. Keeping our families protected from an unexpected encounter with a person harboring a vaccine-preventable illness, is one of the reasons we want to be sure we are all up-to-date on vaccinations. 

This includes Moms and Dads, too. 

Adults who have had the chickenpox as a child have life-long protection from the classic infection. Not sure if you've had the pox? Call your mother. She'd like to hear from you. Those of us who had the itching bumps as a kid still harbor the virus in our nervous system, keeping the possibility of shingles in our future.

Adults who contract chickenpox for the first time do have more complications from the virus, including lung and brain infections. So, if you are not sure that you had chickenpox as a kid, it's not too late to get the varicella (chickenpox) vaccine. Adults need 2 doses of the vaccine for full protection, separated by 28 days. This vaccine is readily available at health clinics and doctors offices. 

All children should receive 2 doses of the chickenpox vaccine before Kindergarten. The first dose is given after the age of 1 year.

It is reassuring to know the Royals franchise took appropriate precautions to protect the rest of the team and community-at-large. Although it is unknown how long the players will be off the field, reports suggest it could be as long as 2 weeks before they don the Blue. 

We wish a safe recovery to our Boys in Blue.