'It's not fair to knowingly expose others': Pink and Carey Hart slammed for taking their son with contagious illness out in public

Elizabeth Di Filippo
·Lifestyle & Features Editor
·3 min read

Carey Hart is under fire for his parenting decisions after the father-of-two shared a photo of his son with a severe case of Hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD) to Instagram.

Carey Hart and Pink. Image via Getty Images.
Carey Hart and Pink. Image via Getty Images.

Hart, who is currently accompanying his wife Pink on tour, shared photos of the couple’s two children who have fallen sick. In the photos shared Tuesday to Hart’s Instagram account, one-year-old son, Jameson is seen in his diaper with a severe rash all over his body while daughter Willow, 7, is in the bathtub with a high fever.

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“Wanna know how glamorous tour can be? Jameson has hand, foot, and mouth; and willow has a 102 temp. Both kids laid up and mama @pink still has to push through and do shows,” Hart captioned the post. “I had Jameson at breakfast yesterday and this vile woman at the table next to us kept staring at him with a shitty look on her face. I told her it was bed bugs 😂. #NoRestForTheWicked#LifeInHotels”

While some followers sympathized with the parents, many were quick to criticize Hart for taking his young son in public with the highly contagious illness.

“I love following your feed for sure because you are very honest. But as a mom of three whose kids have had HFM a few times, I say that you made a mistake,” one concerned follower commented. “HFM is super contagious and it’s not fair to knowingly expose others… Maybe the post should have been more to the tune of ‘f—ked up and took J out when I thought it was a rash but it’s actually contagious HFM.”

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Hart defended his actions, and replied, “No, but you are welcome to unfollow.”

Hand-foot-and-mouth disease is a contagious illness that commonly affects children under the age of five. According to the Centre for Disease Control, HFMD is caused by a variety of different viruses that young children’s immune systems are unable to defend themselves against. Without treatment, HFMD typically resolves itself within 7 to 10 days, however there have been rare instances where children have developed viral meningitis and required hospitalization.

Hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD) presents a rash that sometimes blisters on the palms of hands, the soles of feet, and other areas of the body such as elbows and knees. Image via Getty Images.
Hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD) presents a rash that sometimes blisters on the palms of hands, the soles of feet, and other areas of the body such as elbows and knees. Image via Getty Images.

Although it’s not possible to treat the virus that causes HFMD , it is possible to treat the uncomfortable symptoms.

The telltale sign of the illness are fever, blistering mouth sores and a body rash that targets the palms of the hand, the bottom of the feet and can sometimes appear on the knees, elbows or buttocks.

HFMD can be contracted through kissing someone with the virus, sharing utensils, coughing and sneezing, touching contaminated surfaces that have been exposed to the virus, and contact with fecal matter of an infected person while changing their diaper.

Those infected with HFMD are most contagious during the first week of the illness. However, it’s important to remember that although adults may not exhibit symptoms of HFMD due to their developed immune systems, it is possible for adults to act as a carrier of the virus and pass it on to someone else.

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