Here is my take.
First, I have to admit i wouldn't spend the day upset if I caught my child drinking out of someone else's cup or eating someone else's food etc. There are just bigger things to worry about in the big scheme of things. Important note- this is coming from a parent who did not know about cf until I my kids were 7,9 and 11. And it's one of the very, very few things I'm grateful for, to be honest, when it comes to my daughter's late dx. It would have made me stark raving mad to worry about every little germ and thing in the mouth and whatnot ...and so she had her toddlerhood and early childhood to do exactly what her brothers did, with no more concern over her in this area than I would for them. However- did I encourage her brothers to be unsanitary? No. Did I encourage hand washing and teach personal hygiene? Absolutely. But life happens, especially with little kids. Kids are going to be disgusting sometimes. You use those moments to teach them how you would like them to behave, cf or not (honestly, we want all our kids to be civilized, don't we?) but in the long run it's pointless to worry too much since we will only succeed in making both ourselves and them worry all the time. And in general we WANT life to happen. Emily dug in the dirt and played at the park and tromped through the woods after the boys and caught frogs and bugs and gardened and still does any of that stuff she wants to do, with them or with me. At the time of dx she cultured staph. That is it. And it hasn't been till the last 18mo that things have gotten worse and we suspect PA but haven't caught it on culture yet. I think Twistofchaos and Jonathon are right- these things grow when the conditions are right for them, the exposure is there via everyday life all the time no matter how we try to shield them. I think a lot of factors aside from mutation play a role (modifier genes and whatnot) play a role, but being overprotective is not one of them.
However, I also notice that some- not all, but some- of those with cf who berate parents in the harshest fashion for reacting in a protective manner are not parents themselves, and this being the case cannot possibly understand that the nature to protect is a MASSIVE RESPONSIBILITY, and one that extends far beyond things related to cf. They can be unnecessary hard on us parents without having any idea, really, what they are talking about if they haven't lived the responsibility of keeping a child- ANY CHILD- alive, healthy, and happy. It's a hard job and it takes time to navigate the steep learning curve of protecting vs letting go, taming their impulsiveness vs letting them fly. We all as parents need to hear about your perspective as adults with cf, since we will NEVER understand it personally, but please- if anyone reading this thread (I am not referencing anyone in particular, it's more a general statement) feels inclined to harshly judge a parent, and is not a parent themselves- try to realize there are factors here you simply cannot understand.
First, I have to admit i wouldn't spend the day upset if I caught my child drinking out of someone else's cup or eating someone else's food etc. There are just bigger things to worry about in the big scheme of things. Important note- this is coming from a parent who did not know about cf until I my kids were 7,9 and 11. And it's one of the very, very few things I'm grateful for, to be honest, when it comes to my daughter's late dx. It would have made me stark raving mad to worry about every little germ and thing in the mouth and whatnot ...and so she had her toddlerhood and early childhood to do exactly what her brothers did, with no more concern over her in this area than I would for them. However- did I encourage her brothers to be unsanitary? No. Did I encourage hand washing and teach personal hygiene? Absolutely. But life happens, especially with little kids. Kids are going to be disgusting sometimes. You use those moments to teach them how you would like them to behave, cf or not (honestly, we want all our kids to be civilized, don't we?) but in the long run it's pointless to worry too much since we will only succeed in making both ourselves and them worry all the time. And in general we WANT life to happen. Emily dug in the dirt and played at the park and tromped through the woods after the boys and caught frogs and bugs and gardened and still does any of that stuff she wants to do, with them or with me. At the time of dx she cultured staph. That is it. And it hasn't been till the last 18mo that things have gotten worse and we suspect PA but haven't caught it on culture yet. I think Twistofchaos and Jonathon are right- these things grow when the conditions are right for them, the exposure is there via everyday life all the time no matter how we try to shield them. I think a lot of factors aside from mutation play a role (modifier genes and whatnot) play a role, but being overprotective is not one of them.
However, I also notice that some- not all, but some- of those with cf who berate parents in the harshest fashion for reacting in a protective manner are not parents themselves, and this being the case cannot possibly understand that the nature to protect is a MASSIVE RESPONSIBILITY, and one that extends far beyond things related to cf. They can be unnecessary hard on us parents without having any idea, really, what they are talking about if they haven't lived the responsibility of keeping a child- ANY CHILD- alive, healthy, and happy. It's a hard job and it takes time to navigate the steep learning curve of protecting vs letting go, taming their impulsiveness vs letting them fly. We all as parents need to hear about your perspective as adults with cf, since we will NEVER understand it personally, but please- if anyone reading this thread (I am not referencing anyone in particular, it's more a general statement) feels inclined to harshly judge a parent, and is not a parent themselves- try to realize there are factors here you simply cannot understand.