The findings from two separate studies are in contrast to previous research and beliefs that children are less likely to contract or spread coronavirus.
Their publication follows concerns from teaching unions about the safety of staff when schools reopen to all children in England in September and as more young children begin to return to childcare settings.
The first study by paediatricians working in a hospital in Chicago found that children under the age of five who were infected with Covid-19 had significantly more of the viral generic material in their noses than older children and adults.
The research, which is published in the JAMA journal, is based upon analysis of nasal swabs taken from 415 people with ‘mild’ to ‘moderate’ cases of coronavirus within one week of their symptoms appearing. Researchers compared swabs from three groups of people – children under the age of five, those aged five to 17 and adults aged 18- to- 65.
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