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This is why you should never let someone kiss your baby

(Getty)
(Getty)

There’s something about babies that make people act irrationally. Maybe it’s their smell or the innocent way they look at the world around them. For many people, it can be a real struggle to not put on a silly voice and want to touch them. In some cases, people can’t help but want to kiss them.

But one mother is begging you to stop before you pucker up.

“This is what happens to babies when been in contact with a coldsore,” writes Amy Stinton in a Facebook post accompanied by a shocking image of her 14-month-old son Oliver.

The picture shows Oliver’s legs and feet, covered with what looks like a painful rash.

“Oliver now has the herpes virus and will have this for life. Think before you kiss a baby next time,” Stinton warns.

And Oliver isn’t the first baby this has happened to.

Last year, Claire Henderson posted a similar picture of her daughter Brooke who also contracted herpes from an adult that kissed her on the face.

“Please share this with every new mom and pregnant woman you know … cold sores can be fatal for a baby,” Henderson warned.

Unlike adults, babies have much weaker immune systems and have greater difficulty fighting the virus.

“In newborns, the infection can become very serious and lead to encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain that requires antiviral and antibacterial medication,” says Julie G. Capiola, a pediatrician at NYU Langone Medical Center.

“Limit the number of people who visit and handle your baby for the first few months, and remind them not to kiss the baby’s face, especially on the lips.”

Are you guilty of kissing babies of friends or family? Let us know by tweeting to @YahooStyleCA.