I think in our country we have all benefitted from our health service and from all of those people previously who have given their, their time and tissue samples and effort and so on. And who knows what research breakthroughs we can contribute to if we can put a little bit of effort into the current research projects at the moment. Because there are still so many things which affect our children very, very seriously and so if we, if we can contribute to that research and it helps kids, it helps keep our children and the children of future generations more healthy then we should consider can I help, can I volunteer my child to help with that.

Yes, yes I think we all expect to be able to go to our A&E department in case of an emergency and that blood will be available and yet so few of us are actually blood donors. And if you stop and think about it how are these researchers going to be able to do clinical trials unless some of us actually volunteer for it?

I would just like to encourage more parents to consider taking part, it might not always be suitable for your child; you might decide that you don’t want to put your child through a particular trial. But if more of us even considered letting our children take part then we’d make such a positive impact on research which of course can only help improve our children’s lives and their health.

Yes, yes suitable things. I think for my baby I would be even less inclined to do things which required physical discomfort for him, for example taking blood tests and things like that. I’ve volunteered to do that myself with some of the studies I’ve done. When I had an MRI I had to have two cannulas inserted, you know, which is, which is mildly uncomfortable. But I would, I would think twice before I volunteered the baby for that kind of thing. I think in his case there would have to be a much more direct benefit for him for example to have blood taken than just the warm fuzzy feeling you get from helping out with research, which, which, might with research which might ultimately not have a direct impact on your own health or wellbeing.

So it’s quite a different thing isn’t it to volunteer yourself to take part than to volunteer your child to take part?

Yes I think so yes and I know that the medical and healthcare that brought him into this world and is keeping him healthy is important and it’s very often research based and so on. But I think I have a duty of care to him to think carefully about what I might be subjecting him to. And of course in the case of my baby I would also have to discuss it with his father before I volunteer him for anything. But for example I’ve I’ve volunteered him for the local university to do some psychology studies which are non invasive and usually they’re actually fun for the baby involved. Yes, yes. No I think if it was going to be uncomfortable for him, I think I’d have to be persuaded of the benefit, for example if he had a rare blood group for example and they were, there were few people they could call on for a trial then I would be more persuaded to allow a little bit of discomfort for him if it was going to be of very great benefit for a large number of people.

I think I’d encourage my older children to take part in trials if they wanted to and I think I’d explain that they wouldn’t necessarily be any personal benefit to them but you don’t know if what you’re going to do is to benefit somebody else in the future. So yes I would, I would encourage them to take part and to think of themselves as citizens with a, with a contribution to make.

I was I was invited to take part via the Bounty e-mail newsletter and it’s the EAT study looking at babies and young children developing food intolerances and because I have some food intolerances myself it was something I was quite interested in, and so the babies had to be less than three months old I think, be completely breast fed and you had to be able to get up to London once a year. And unfortunately I didn’t qualify because my baby had three bottles of formula when he was in hospital so we were turned down.

Right and how did you feel about that?

A little bit miffed. A little bit disappointed because I was interested in the trial and I thought it could potentially be of use to me and my baby because I have these mild food intolerances so anything which would help me manage his weaning and his diet would be of interest to me.

So I was invited to take part via the Bounty e-mail newsletter for new mums and it’s called the EAT study and it’s about food intolerances in babies and young children. And as far as I remember they carefully introduce foods when babies are weaning and look for reactions to those foods and that’s why they need babies who have been completely breast fed so that there isn’t for example a hidden reaction to formula.

Well the EAT study it was in an e-mail which went out, I presume to lots and lots of new mums who sign up for the Bounty Packs and their newsletters. And so it just gave a brief explanation of the study and the criteria and I sent an e-mail just on that information alone. So I never got as far as looking at the information pack. Yes, yes. And saying your baby had to be less than three months old completely breast fed and able to go up to London once a year.

Oh right, okay. So did you, so at that point when you read the information, was it at that point you thought no I’m not eligible did you?

No I thought I would be eligible but I did tell them that my baby had had three bottles of formula while he was in hospital and they rang me to say that unfortunately that disqualified him from the study.

Yes, but you would take part in other studies if there was something?

Yes, yes suitable things. I think for my baby I would be even less inclined to do things which required physical discomfort for him, for example taking blood tests and things like that. I’ve volunteered to do that myself with some of the studies I’ve done. When I had an MRI I had to have two cannulas inserted, you know, which is, which is mildly uncomfortable. But I would think twice before I volunteered the baby for that kind of thing. I think in his case there would have to be a much more direct benefit for him for example to have blood taken than just the warm fuzzy feeling you get from helping out with research, which might with research which might ultimately not have a direct impact on your own health or wellbeing.

So it’s quite a different thing isn’t it to volunteer yourself to take part than to volunteer your child to take part?

Yes I think so yes and I know that the, the medical and healthcare that brought him into this world and is keeping him healthy is important and it’s very often research based and so on. But I think I have a duty of care to him to think carefully about what I might be subjecting him to. And of course in the case of my baby I would also have to discuss it with his father before I volunteer him for anything. But for example I’ve volunteered him for the local university to do some psychology studies which are non invasive and usually they’re a