Gladiators contestant Aneila Afsar has shared an urgent plea to others to “stop kissing babies and children” after her daughter was left hospitalised by a nasty virus.

Afsar, who made history earlier this year as the first person to compete on Gladiators wearing a hijab, shared a photo of her daughter Aya on Instagram, saying she was “on an IV drip because someone kissed her while carrying the cold sore virus (HSV-1)”.

“I’ve said this since the day she was born: do NOT kiss babies or children unless you are their parent or immediate family and the parents are fine with it,” the mum-of-two from Lancashire wrote in the caption .

“I don’t care if it’s normal in communities or if you ‘mean well’ – cold sores for babies and young children can be severe and even life-threatening.”

The wo

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