When you’re a first time parent, it feels like there are literal mountains of information that you don’t know. Things you never thought you would need to know, and answers to questions you never thought you needed to ask.

I, for one, had zero idea that honey is a terribly dangerous thing to give an infant.

It seems harmless enough, something to put on a pacifier or a tip of a finger to sooth a fussy kid (colicky baby moms unite), but in reality, it contains a potentially deadly pathogen called clostridium botulinum (botulism).

And while most adults with healthy immune systems can eat honey without worry, an infant is another matter entirely.

Botulism is a potentially life-threatening condition in which the bacterium c. botulinum releases a neurotoxin that can cause paralysis. It can become fatal without immediate treatment.

Of course, millions of people also inject it willingly in the form of Botox, so obviously it doesn’t affect every person every time.

C. botulinum can survive in a dormant state for years, only producing spores when conditions are optimal – it needs a low-oxygen environment, most notably.

The dormant spores are found fairy often in honey.

The spores aren’t problematic for humans, since they’re only dangerous when actively growing and producing the neurotoxin. Babies, though, have immature digestive and immune systems, both of which can become optimal environments for the spores to begin to reproduce.

A baby with botulism might have trouble breathing, constipation, loss of head control, and trouble feeding. If caught early, most infants are treated and make a full recovery, and cases are exceedingly rare.

Almost all of them, though, can be traced back to consuming honey. Since honey is a known source and easy to avoid, that is the advice from medical professionals.

Adults can contract foodborne botulism, too, but it’s even more rare and typically found in incorrectly canned or preserved food. Ready-to-eat foods are the bigger risk, since boiling temperatures do kill the bacterium.

You can’t smell or taste c. botulinum, so if something about your room-temperature or stored food seems off, the best course of action is to throw it out.

And definitely keep your honey and your baby separate.

It can be another one-year rite of passage.

If you thought that was interesting, you might like to read about why we should be worried about the leak in the bottom of the ocean.