Breastfeeding and the vaccines

[Raindancer411]

Hi all, I am 39 so just been offered the jab. I am currently breastfeeding so wondered what other mums were doing?

I have found an article from the states saying there was a small trial of BFing Mums on the Pfizer and it did make some babies unwell.

All my local seem to be doing AZ, but I am leaning towards Pifzer. I haven't seen any articles for BFing and AZ.

Many thanks

My friend in the US had moderna and she’s bf too and was very happy with it. I’m not sure what they are giving bf women here though.

Following with interest as also bfing and will be getting jab soon

I had AZ and am breastfeeding a toddler. We both had snotty noses a few days after for a week, but not sure if that's related or not. He also went a bit milk mad, having loads, but he tends to do that with any cold. I only thought about it being linked because a poster on here who's breastfeeding mentioned the same after their jab; SIL also had AZ and her baby was also a bit snotty after (but so was her toddler who isn't breastfeeding so pretty meaningless). There is some evidence that you'll pass antibodies to the little one, not enough to be equivalent to a vaccine but should be helpful.

This may be useful for a range of opinions and links to the antibody study: www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/coronavirus/#:~:text=You%20should%20not%20stop%20breastfeeding,differently%20to%20the%20other%20versions.

@MRex Thanks for the link

I had the Pfizer with no issues for baby and a sore arm for me. I had it in the arm I don’t lie on when feeding at night. We had previously had covid.

I am BF my baby and had the Pfizer vaccine when she was 2wks old. No side effects at all for either of us. I'm due the 2nd dose this week.

I'm breastfeeding and extremely keen to have the vaccine (any of them) ASAP!

I’m breastfeeding and it’s 100% no from me until I finish. All the new discoveries about side effects it’s very clear to me we don’t know enough about the vaccine to say no issues with breastfeeding.
I’m happy to take the vaccine once finished.

I'm breastfeeding and had the AZ in feb. No problems

I had AZ and have an ebf baby. I was a bit grotty with a fever for a day. Baby seemed fine. Will go for my second jab later this month.

I had AZ and felt rubbish for a couple of days after. DD didn't show any reaction to me having the vaccine. She's two so bit different to EBF

I have been hoping DS2 would keep feeding until I got the vaccine as I'm hoping I'll be able to pass some antibodies on to him. He's just turned 2 and shows no sign of stopping yet!

Because vaccines are biological in nature and broken down swiftly by the body I'm not concerned about any side effects for him personally. I'm more careful with drugs where the chemical itself could transfer to the baby but no evidence that happens with the vaccines.

I'm BF and had AZ. I was a bit fluey for 24 hours but DS was fine.

If you look at pregnantthenscrewed on Instagram, they had lots of info and experts talking through it all for pregnancy and breastfeeding.

They are now offering the vaccine to pregnancy women too on the basis they don't believe there is any risk.

All personal choice but was the right decision for me. Lots of info and expert opinion to review!

I think it’s concerning that the advice to vaccinate pregnant women has changed so many times, that speaks volumes itself - let’s not confuse it being safe for children’s vs no known side affects.
I wouldn’t vaccinate my child currently so I don’t see why I would take it if I’m breastfeeding and personally low risk.

Thanks for this thread! i'm breastfeeding my 17 month old still and due to get vaccinated tomorrow. i'm 40 so assuming it'll be the AZ vaccine.

I found this article quite helpful:
www.rcog.org.uk/en/guidelines-research-services/coronavirus-covid-19-pregnancy-and-womens-health/covid-19-vaccines-and-pregnancy/covid-19-vaccines-pregnancy-and-breastfeeding/

It's mostly about pregnancy but there is a small section on breastfeeding which states:

Although there is lack of safety data for these specific vaccinations in breastfeeding, there is no plausible mechanism by which any vaccine ingredient could pass to your baby through breast milk. You should therefore not stop breastfeeding in order to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

It's up to each individual person's choice and I totally get the emotional tug of war over it. I have fretted a lot over this as i'm a known worrier but I'm mindful of the fact that if i catch covid itself then I will struggle to keep apart from my baby and i'm more concerned with passing it on / being around for him. Looking at India and what has happened there has convinced me I should go ahead with it but as with any vaccination you have during pregnancy etc you have to weigh up the pros / cons for yourself and make the decision thats right for you.

I was vaccinated last week (Moderna) and was told the only thing BFing mothers should avoid was having the vaccine within 7 days of baby's MMR jab. Otherwise all good.

@piratehugs do you mind telling me who said about the 7 days between the jabs?