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LiveScience
LiveScience
Emily Cooke

Did pandemic lockdowns stunt kids' immune systems long-term?

Picture of a young girl sat on a bed while her mother puts a blue surgical mask on her face. The mother is also wearing the same kind of mask. They are in a bedroom with a large window in the background, a mirror behind the mother on the right-hand side of the image and in the background there are some shelves, one of which has a pot plant on it .

The COVID-19 pandemic drastically reduced people's in-person interactions with others as events were canceled and people limited their excursions, and many also practiced social distancing and masked up if they did go out. These moves were intended to control the spread of the disease and were shown to help flatten the curve.  

However, some concerns have been raised about the potential impact of these actions on children's immune systems, and namely, kids' ability to fight infections. But did COVID "lockdowns" and other pandemic-related restrictions actually stunt kids' immune systems? 

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