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New data from the CDC shows 61% of babies, less then 6 months old are less likely to be hospitalized with Covid -19 if the mother gets vaccinated during pregnancy.
The data also shows mothers who opted not to get the Covid-19 vaccine, 84% of babies were hospitalized.
Medical experts say receiving the vaccine when pregnant is important for your baby because their immune system is not formed until six months after birth.
Dr. Nancy Herta is an OBGYN at Memorial Healthcare Hospital and says she sees some of her patients are choosing to get vaccinated while others are not.
However, she urges her patients to get the vaccine because unvaccinated people are at higher risks in getting the virus, and, she says, it can cause severe sickness in pregnant women.
She says a babies immunity is reflection of the mom’s immunity. So any immunity that the mom has, will be passed on to the baby.
“We had one woman lose her baby who was not vaccinated, and she almost died. “We had one woman lose her baby who was not vaccinated, and she almost died,” Herta says.
Herta says her patients who expecting and diagnosed with covid-19 have experienced difficulty breathing, which could lead earlier deliveries
She says, “sometimes the baby needs to be delivered in order to help the mother, because when a woman is very pregnant, it decreases her lung capacity.”
In order to protect you and your baby, she recommends getting the vaccine in the early stages of your pregnancy.
“The best time would be by 20 weeks of pregnancy. You’re going to have a higher passage to the baby,” Herta says.
The passage of these antibodies happens just as any other way a baby would get nourished in the womb.
Herta says, “If a mom gets vaccinated, she generates an immune reaction and those antibodies do pass through the placenta and to the baby.”
If you’re uncomfortable getting vaccinated during your pregnancy, she says getting the vaccine after pregnancy; can still protect your baby.
“When you’re breastfeeding again, the antibodies will pass through the breast milk also to the baby. If they choose that and they breastfeed, they’re still going to pass some immunity on to the baby,” Herta says.
One thing she does urge people to do is not only think about themselves, but their unborn child too.
She says, “people who are so worried about doing the best thing for their baby, the best thing to do for your baby is to get the vaccination.”
Dr. Herta encourages people to do their own research when considering getting any vaccine because the choice is always yours.