Congratulations! Being an expectant dad, particularly for first time, can be a great joy—but also brings up a host of challenges and questions. One of these is how to best protect your family, including the new baby, from flu. It’s well known that expectant mothers and their babies are at increased risk for flu-related complications. Pregnant women are also more likely to be hospitalized with flu than women of reproductive age who are not pregnant. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric, and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) both strongly endorse maternal flu vaccination as well as the overall safety of flu vaccines at any time during pregnancy.
So, as part of our “Man-Up-To-Flu” campaign, the dads and health experts at Healthy Men Inc., (HMI) have put together this FAQ primer to help you and your expectant partner make an informed decision about flu vaccination. We at HMI believe vaccines are one of the most important ways to provide a shield against serious infections. At the same time, while each individual must make their own decisions about medical matters, it’s important that those decisions are based on solid information and facts from reputable sources.
We encourage all expectant dads talk with their partner about health issues and to attend as many OB visits as possible. Doing so is the best way not only to ensure that your partner’s pregnancy is a healthy one, but also that you start seeing the pregnancy as something that affects you. The more involved you are during the pregnancy, the more involved you’ll be in your child’s life after they’re born. Your partner’s OB and medical staff are experienced professionals who are in the best position to answer questions (including yours!) and give advice and recommendations that are based on your family’s unique circumstances.
- Why all the worry? the flu is just a bad cold, right?
Sorry, but it’s not. Influenza (better known as the flu) is a serious condition—especially when there are underlying circumstances that lower your body’s ability to fight infections. In an average season, flu sends about 300,000 people to the hospital (some intensive care units), and kills 25,000 people. If that doesn’t qualify as serious, we don’t know what does. Worse yet, most of those hospitalizations and deaths are preventable. In fact, of all those hospitalized with flu last season, a whopping 97% were not vaccinated.
During pregnancy, a case of the flu can be very dangerous. The high fever that often accompanies flu can cause birth defects and premature birth. Even a mild case of the flu while pregnant can cause: preterm labor, premature birth, an increased risk of life threatening illness, and may lead to low birth weight or immaturity of the baby’s lungs and heart.
- The expectant mom is very healthy, so there’s no need to worry about flu
Being healthy is always a very good thing. However, pregnancy dramatically reduces ones immune system function and puts stress on heart and lungs. If can also produce a type of diabetes or make other underlying medical conditions worse. All of that makes the pregnant mom much more susceptible to difficult and potentially dangerous flu complications, including severe infections, hospitalizations, and death.
- People I know got the shot but still got sick—either from the shot or from someone else. What’s the use?
Flu vaccine cannot give you the flu. In some cases, people have reactions as their immune system responds normally to the vaccine. But these are not flu and don’t last very long. And yes, it’s absolutely true that getting the vaccine doesn’t guarantee that you won’t get the flu. That said, numerous studies have reported that at the very least, by helping the body fight the infection more effectively, in most people, the flu vaccine decreases the severity of symptoms, shortens the length of time the infection lasts, prevents serious hospitalization, and reduces the chances that you’ll die.
- Are there greater risks for ethnic and minority expectant mothers?
Yes. People from some racial and ethnic minority groups are more likely to be hospitalized with flu. The reasons for this are not always clear but the data suggest there is an increased risk for them and members of their household. Here’s what we know: Compared to White adults, flu hospitalization rates are nearly 80% higher for Blacks, 30% higher for American Indians/Alaska Natives (AI/AN), and 20% higher for Hispanics.
- Should the expectant father also get a flu shot?
It’s important to remember that in addition to protecting the person who gets vaccinated, flu vaccines also reduce the likelihood that the vaccinated person will spread the flu to others. That’s why HMI experts believe that everyone in your household—along with anyone who may have frequent contact with members of the household, such as grandparents and relatives over six months of age could benefit from flu vaccine (however, each person considering vaccination should speak to a healthcare provider first).
Pregnancy is already a challenging time for most families and tends to makes ordinary household routines a bit more complex and stressful than normal. Adding in a case or two of “family flu”—which at the very least can involve lost time from work, childcare issues, and simply feeling miserable—can make everything far more difficult.
- We have all had COVID vaccinations, including the newest booster. Won’t that cover us against the seasonal flu?
Unfortunately, no. These two viruses are very different. And just as vaccines designed to help protect you from seasonal flu won’t work against the COVID virus, the COVID vaccine doesn’t provide protection against flu infections.
- So, If I get the flu vaccination, we are pretty much safe and can just get on with things?
Not exactly. Because the vaccine decreases the severity of a flu infection, it doesn’t make you “virus-proof.” For that reason, we recommend that you take reasonable precautions. For example, the flu virus can survive on hard surfaces for up to 24-48 hours. This includes common surfaces such as supermarket touch pads, gas pumps, office equipment, and phones. Touching these surfaces can easily transmit the virus to your hands, which, in turn, can be introduced into your body via the nose, eyes, or mouth; or to someone else. So be sure to frequently wash your hands with warm water and soap, and use hand sanitizers between hand washings. Avoid going to work or close contact with others if you have even symptoms (coughing, sneezing, fever, or just feeling crappy). Eat wall, exercise regularly, and get plenty of rest. In some situations, particularly if a family member is immunologically compromised, other strategies may also be helpful.
- Will the flu vaccine hurt the fetus?
Over the past few decades, millions of expectant moms have received the flu vaccine and there have been very, very few reports of fetal harm. In fact, it’s been shown that the increased immune response and protection against the flu that the expectant mom enjoys after being vaccinated is passed on to her unborn during the pregnancy and for the first six months after birth. This is very important, as your newborn’s immature immune system is very vulnerable to infection in those early months.
- I’m worried about the safety of flu vaccines during pregnancy
Hundreds of millions of pregnant parents have received flu vaccines over the past 50 years, the safety factor for is extremely high, with the most common negative reaction being mild, localized discomfort. However, because the issue of safety is so important, HMI strongly recommends that you and your partner have a serious conversation about how best to protect your growing family from the flu and what part vaccines play in your overall strategy. In the event that the mom-to-be decides against the vaccine, it’s even more important that you, everyone else in your household over six months of age, and others who will be visiting you and your new baby get vaccinated.
- We’ve gotten flu vaccines almost every year. Won’t the immunity we got from previous vaccines protect us this year?
Nope. A vaccine’s ability to protect you from severe infections and hospitalizations decreases over time., so the chances are slim that whatever immunity you enjoyed in previous years will protect you this year. In addition—and this is really important—because the strains of influenza viruses that are “going around” change every year, the vaccines themselves have to be tailored to combat the current strains. Bottom line: Skipping vaccination in any given year is not a good idea—especially when we’re talking about the health of your partner and your new baby.
