Our Children May End Up Being Our Greatest Casualties

The Department of Health website states that one child has died from COVID-19. A male aged 10-19 years. This is the first COVID-19 death in Australia in children, according to official government data.
 
However, upon further investigation, and as reported in the Sydney Morning Herald, the child did not die from COVID-19. The 15-year-old male tragically passed away from pneumococcal meningitis.
 
As the boy tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, he was subsequently listed as a COVID-19 death. The hospital has confirmed that the “patient was also COVID-positive, however this was not the reason for his admission and was not the cause of death”.
 
Even NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant confirmed that “he died from pneumococcal meningitis”.
 
If his cause of death was confirmed not to be COVID-19, why has he been added to the official death toll for COVID-19?
 
Furthermore, how many other people have died from other causes and have been listed as COVID-19 deaths?
 
The government continues the sprout the narrative that we must learn to live with COVID-19, and that we will focus on hospitalisations and deaths rather than case numbers. How can we focus on hospitalisations and deaths when the numbers are not being recorded accurately?
 
Which begs the question, what other data has been manipulated to instil fear into the population?
 
In spite of the inaccurate recording of data, it is clear that COVID-19 does not impact children. What does impact children is closing schools and impeding their education.
 
A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine highlights the importance of keeping schools open.
 
Sweden took a different approach to almost all other countries in 2020. This included keeping preschools and schools open, encouraging social distancing and discouraging the use of face masks for children.
 
From March to June 2020, 15 children with COVID-19 were admitted to ICU. 4 had an underlying chronic condition. No child died of COVID-19.
 
During the same period, less than 10 preschool teachers and 20 school teachers were admitted to ICU with COVID-19.
 
The study concluded that “despite Sweden’s having kept schools and preschools open, we found a low incidence of severe Covid-19 among schoolchildren and children of preschool age during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Among the 1.95 million children who were 1 to 16 years of age, 15 children had Covid-19, MIS-C (multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children), or both conditions and were admitted to an ICU, which is equal to 1 child in 130,000.”
 
Again, no child died from COVID-19 during this time.
 
Closing schools is not the only thing that negatively impacts children. Locking them inside and stopping them from being active is extremely detrimental to their health.
 
QJM conducted a systematic review of the literature on the relationship between vitamin D levels, risk and severity of COVID-19 in the paediatric population. This is what the results revealed:
 

• Low levels of vitamin D increased the risk of severe disease in infected paediatric patients.
• Children and adolescents with vitamin D deficiency had a greater risk of COVID-19 infection compared to patients with normal vitamin D levels.
• Improvement in disease severity with vitamin D supplementation.
• Almost half of the paediatric COVID patients suffered from vitamin D deficiency.
• Low levels of vitamin D is associated with greater risk of infection and poorer outcome in paediatrics.

 
Why are playgrounds closed? Why are sporting activities cancelled? Why aren’t our kids playing outside in the sunshine, which not only helps protect them against COVID-19, but also improves their overall health and wellbeing?
 
The most frightening aspect of the pandemic for children is the impact on their mental health.
 
Kids Helpline revealed that suicide rates among Victorian teenagers has “skyrocketed by 184 per cent” from 1 December 2020 to May 31 2021. Teenagers aged 13-18 accounted for 75% of total crisis interventions during this time.
 
44% of Victorian emergency interventions were responding to a “young person’s immediate intent to suicide”, whilst 31% involved child abuse emergencies.
 
“Where schools and other community connections may have previously played a role supporting young people at risk of abuse, the extended lockdowns and home schooling may have led to an increase in young people seeking support from us”, said Kids Helpline Project Manager Leo Hede.
 
The impact of closing schools goes far beyond just education.
 
Calls to Kids Helpline by children aged 5-9 increased by 80%, duty of care interventions increased by 48% compared to 2019, and referrals to police, ambulance and Child Safety for children at “imminent risk of serious harm” were 46% higher than the previous three months.
 
These statistics are devasting, heart breaking and incomprehensible. Why are our children being harmed unnecessarily? When is enough, enough?
 
It’s time to bring logic, common sense and science back into the conversation. Three things that have been sorely missing over the past 18 months.
 
Children are not at risk from COVID-19. Yet, they are at risk of delayed development, poorer health outcomes and mental health issues, including suicide.
 
Lockdowns, masks and vaccines are not the answer for children. The answer is to get them back to school, keep them active, and let them simply be kids again.
 
Tragically, our children may end up being the greatest casualties of the pandemic. We must do everything we can to protect our children before it’s too late.

---