Are Flu Shots Safe if You’re Pregnant?

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Delicious
  • LinkedIn
  • StumbleUpon
  • Add to favorites
  • Email
  • RSS

Hi, my mother-in-law is nagging me to get a flu shot, but is it safe? Can it make the baby have egg allergies?”

Flu shots are safe and you should get one. Pregnancy weakens your immune system so that your body doesn’t reject the baby as a foreign invader, and that makes you more vulnerable to not only the flu but other illnesses as well. It also makes flus more dangerous for both you and the baby. Flu shots are not only safe for you and the baby, but will help protect the baby from flu for as long as six months after birth.

The flu shot does not increase the baby’s risk of developing egg allergies, if anything, prenatal exposure reduces the risk of allergies. If you have an egg allergy, there are egg-free versions of the flu vaccine available. You should not take the flu mist version of the vaccine while you’re pregnant because it’s made with live virus.

If you are concerned about mercury or thimerosal, the Centers for Disease Control in the U.S. publishes annually its list of approved vaccines. Single-dose flu shots will contain no thimerosal or mercury, multi-dose vials will contain trace amounts to act as a preservative and keep the vaccine from being contaminated after it’s been opened. If you’re worried, ask the nurse or pharmacist giving the shot about the brand, and look it up on the CDC website.

Share and Enjoy

Leave a Comment