Mum creates 'Don't Touch' signs for twin babies to avoid strangers' germs

It’s normal for parents to have reservations about other people touching their children.

But one mother has taken her objections one step further after creating a “Don’t touch me” signs.

Helen Baker, 40, struggled with 10 rounds of IVF over six years before giving birth to her twins, daughter Coco and son Monty in 2018.

The property landlord, who is also mother to son Hugo, eight, felt anxious about the health of her babies when strangers touched them.

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She was already familiar with this feeling from when her first-born was little – and decided enough was enough.

"It isn't acceptable to go up to an adult and randomly touch them, so why should it be any different with babies?," she told Caters.

"I used to get anxiety when people would touch Hugo and invade my personal space and I wasn't willing to go through this again with the twins.”

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A previous incident where a woman touched her son Hugo’s face had left her feeling “out of control and slightly violated”, Baker explained.

Her solution was to produce a range of waterproof, wipe-clean “Don’t touch” tags, which would allow her and fellow parents to warn off strangers without the need for confrontation.

“I created these child-friendly tags for the mums out there who were suffering like me and for the premature or sick babies who can't be exposed to germs,” she said.

"The polite signs are to put parents at ease. It is within every parent's right to say 'don't touch the baby' - but sometimes it's awkward to do so and at least this way, the signs do the talking.

"I am now never put in an awful situation where someone who may not of washed their hands is touching my new precious babies."

Baker says the tags have had a mixed reaction, with some calling them “over the top”. However, other parents have congratulated her on the initiative.

Those looking to purchase the tags can do so from Baker’s website, Don’t Touch The Baby.

While some parents are warier than others about people making physical contact with their children, it’s understandable in light of horror stories such as one baby who almost died after contracting herpes from a family member’s kiss.