Is it safe to have vaccinations while pregnant?

If you’re unsure about vaccinations during pregnancy, here’s all you need to know...

A lot depends on whether the vaccine is ‘live’ or whether it has been inactivated, removing any chance of your baby becoming infected.

Live vaccinations - what you need to know

If the vaccine is ‘live’ it contains a small amount of live virus, which may potentially affect your baby. There has been very little research carried out into the effects of many vaccinations on unborn babies so they will not normally be recommended for pregnancy. You may be advised to hold off until after you’ve had your baby to be on the safe side.

Although there is currently no real evidence to show having a live vaccine in pregnancy can cause abnormalities in your unborn child, there is a potential risk that your baby could become infected with the virus.  

Only in certain circumstances will a live vaccine be given to a pregnant woman - such as when the threat of infection is greater than the risk posed by the vaccination.

Which vaccinations are ‘live’?

• The BCG vaccination against tuberculosis (TB)
• MMR - which offers protection against measles, mumps and rubella.
• Oral polio
• Oral typhoid
• Yellow fever.

You will very rarely be given any of the above during pregnancy.

Inactivated vaccines

Flu vaccine

Pregnancy weakens your immune system, meaning you’re less capable of fighting bugs and infections. Getting the flu is never pleasant, but when you are pregnant it can make you really poorly as you are at risk from further complications such as pneumonia.

Catching flu in pregnancy is more likely to result in you being admitted to hospital and increases the risk of preterm birth, having a baby with low birth weight. Rarely it can lead to a baby being stillborn.

The flu vaccine is safe to have in pregnancy and you are advised to have it as soon as it becomes available around September time. The vaccine has the added benefit of passing some protection against flu to your baby in the first few months of life when your little one is most vulnerable to infection.

Whooping cough vaccine

Whooping cough is an extremely contagious disease affecting the lungs, which can lead to serious complications and even death, particularly for babies in the first three months of life.

Babies who get whooping cough are often admitted to hospital and may require intensive care.. Being Immunised against whooping cough when you’re pregnant means you can pass on protection to your unborn baby via the placenta. This helps to protect them from whooping cough from birth until they can safely have their own vaccination as part of the national immunisation programme, which starts at two months old.

There is no evidence to show that having the whooping cough vaccine during pregnancy Is unsafe. The best time to get the vaccine is between 16 and 32 weeks if possible, so there is enough time for your body to make and pass on antibodies needed to protect your baby. However, if you have not had it by 32 weeks, you still can still have it up until you give birth, although it may not be as effective at protecting your baby. After 32 weeks, it can still stop you from getting whooping cough yourself and passing it onto your baby this way.

Travel vaccinations

If you can, avoid destinations which require vaccinations while you are pregnant. If you have to visit a destination that requires vaccinations, speak to your GP who will be able to talk through your options. If you have no choice but to travel to an ‘at risk’ area, it may be safer to have the immunisation if getting the disease is far more dangerous than the vaccine.

Hepatitis B

Hepatitis B is an inactivated (not live) vaccine and is thought to be very safe for you and to have during pregnancy without risk of harming your baby. If you are pregnant and considered at a high risk of getting the infection which causes inflammation of the liver, you may be advised to have the Hepatitis B vaccine.

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