Q: My son has been getting warts and now his son (my grandson) has been getting them too. He is only 6 years old. My son drinks from a bottle directly and gives the same water bottle to his son. While feeding bananas to his children, if he comes across an over ripe or rotten part, he bites off that portion from his mouth & feeds the balance to his son. He is educated, but yet argues that warts are a viral infection and are not contagious. He says that his son is getting warts not due to his actions. However, I don't agree with him and tell him to keep separate water bottles for children. Can drinking water from the same bottle and eating fruits bitten by the infected person infect children?

A:Viral warts are caused by human papillomaviruses. They are contagious in nature. Infection typically occurs when basal cells of the epidermis of the skin in the host are exposed to infectious virus through a disturbed epithelial barrier as would occur during sexual intercourse or after minor skin abrasions. So there is possible chance of transmission through close contact or even indirect contact through sharing of objects etc.