Pregnancy is an exciting time. It’s also a time that can be overwhelming and confusing. Bringing another human into the world is a big deal, and we know you want what’s best for your developing baby during and beyond pregnancy. There’s a lot of information swirling around these days, and it is often hard to tell truth from fiction. So what about vaccines? Some say they’re dangerous, especially during pregnancy. Others say the opposite. What’s true? Who do you listen to? Today, we dive into vaccinations during pregnancy and offer expertise agreed upon by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and other healthcare experts.

Scientists agree, vaccines are an essential part of prenatal care.

Let’s start by saying that science overwhelmingly shows vaccines to be safe and effective. They’re responsible for saving 4-5 million lives annually. Every year in Colorado alone, they prevent over 8,600 hospitalizations among our state’s children. The routine childhood vaccine schedule affords children immunity to 18 diseases by the age of 16. But vaccines aren’t just for kids. They’re an essential tool for staying healthy throughout the entire lifespan, including during pregnancy. 

Before becoming pregnant, plan on having a discussion with your medical provider where you share your intent to grow your family and where the two of you discuss your immunization record. You’ll want to ensure you’re up to date with recommended vaccines. If you need to get certain vaccines like MMR which prevents measles, mumps, and rubella, you will need to postpone becoming pregnant for a short period of time. 

Once you become pregnant, your body will be working double time to support both you and the baby you are growing. Vaccines in pregnancy also work double time, protecting both you and your baby. Since your body is busy allocating resources to growing your baby, you are at greater risk for severe illness if you do become sick. If your health is at risk, so is your baby’s. That’s why vaccines are so important. According to ACOG, “vaccines are an essential part of prenatal care, offering critical protection to pregnant people and their fetuses.” Another aspect of vaccination during pregnancy is the transfer of antibodies that fight infections to babies. This process is called passive immunity. This provides protection to newborns immediately and through their first several months of life, when they are too young to receive some vaccines. There are four specific diseases you’ll need to receive vaccinations for during pregnancy: COVID-19, Influenza (flu), pertussis (whooping cough), and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). 

COVID-19 vaccines reduce the risk of severe illness, especially for those most at risk, like pregnant people.

Before we discuss why COVID-19 vaccines are so critical during pregnancy, let’s first address some misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines. One common falsehood is that we don’t need them because they don’t prevent infection. In fact, COVID-19 vaccines reduce the severity of infection and decrease the likelihood of hospitalization or death. They also help decrease viral load, so we’re less likely to transmit the virus to others. Getting sick during pregnancy can be a miserable experience and potentially dangerous, so anything you can do to decrease your chance of catching a virus is worth it.

Another common question about COVID-19 vaccines is why we need to continue to get them. While we may have some immunity from infection and previous vaccination, that protection wanes over time. This is why new versions of the vaccine keep coming out and why we need to stay current with them. COVID-19 vaccines have also been shown to help prevent Long COVID, which is a chronic condition that includes mild to severe symptoms and can last weeks and even years. Long COVID is something you definitely don’t want to deal with while pregnant or caring for a newborn.

If you’re pregnant and get COVID-19, you’re at increased risk of severe illness. According to the CDC, pregnant people who become infected with COVID-19 are more likely to have preterm births than uninfected pregnant people. COVID-19 during pregnancy can also result in low birth weight. COVID-19 vaccines, on the other hand, have been shown to reduce the chances of those unwanted outcomes and also reduce infant hospitalization. If you are pregnant, and you haven’t received the latest COVID-19 vaccine, it’s time to head to the pharmacy or local clinic to protect both you and your baby.

Flu vaccines protect pregnant people from severe illness, while also protecting developing babies.

Flu is often downplayed and equated with the common cold. This just isn’t true. Flu infection can be severe in anyone, even in healthy individuals. There’s no way to tell who will be severely infected, hospitalized, or worse. Every year, thousands of people in the U.S. die from flu and hundreds of thousands are hospitalized. Just like COVID-19, flu infection is more likely to result in hospitalization or life-threatening illness in pregnant people than in non-pregnant people (CDC). Flu infection during pregnancy can further result in preterm labor and preterm birth. Aside from those risks, fever, which is a typical symptom of flu infection, can cause neural tube defects (NTDs) in developing babies. NTDs are birth defects of the brain, spine, or spinal cord. 

The bottom line is that getting the flu vaccine during pregnancy is safe, but getting the flu is not.

Flu season typically lasts from October to May in the U.S., and pregnant people can be vaccinated at any time throughout pregnancy. Pregnant people should not receive the nasal spray flu vaccine, but should opt for the shot instead. The nasal spray vaccine contains a live, weakened form of the flu virus, which can cause complications. The flu shot is made from an inactivated virus and is completely safe. 

Pertussis can be deadly in infants and young children, but pregnant people can help keep their babies safe with the Tdap vaccine in each pregnancy.

Pertussis, or whooping cough as it is commonly known, affects people of all ages but can be deadly in infants and young children. Pertussis rates have risen in the U.S. and there have been  6 times as many reported cases in 2024 as there were in 2023. Contrary to some claims, the Tdap vaccine (which provides protection against not only pertussis, but tetanus and diphtheria as well) does not increase the risk of pregnancy complications. Tdap is very safe for pregnant people and their babies, and pregnant people should receive the Tdap vaccine in every pregnancy between 27 and 36 weeks of gestation. This provides protection to babies after birth who cannot receive the DTaP vaccine until 2 months of age and don’t have substantial protection until at least 6 months of age. (DTaP is the vaccine given to infants and young children to protect against the same 3 diseases as Tdap.) 

Immunity from Tdap and DTaP vaccines wanes over time. This means adults and children in close contact with your newborn should also be up to date with these and all other recommended vaccines. (Adults should receive a Tdap vaccine every 10 years.) This is known as “cocooning” and provides an additional shield to protect infants, helping ensure others don’t transmit diseases to them. 

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is dangerous and even deadly in infants and young children, but one dose of the RSV vaccine in pregnancy can help prevent this infection.

RSV is a common virus that for most people typically causes mild, cold-like symptoms. For certain populations like older adults, infants, and young children, RSV can be deadly. In fact, RSV is the leading cause of infant hospitalization. In 2023, new treatments and vaccines were released to protect against RSV. Since RSV season typically runs from September to January, it is recommended that pregnant people receive one dose of the RSV vaccine, Abrysvo, during those months between 32-36 weeks of pregnancy. For infants whose birthing parent did not receive Abrysvo during pregnancy, a monoclonal antibody product, nirsevimab, is recommended up to 8 months of age in their first RSV season. If you’ve already had an RSV vaccine in the past, it is not necessary to get the RSV vaccine in subsequent pregnancies. However, if those individuals have another child, their infants should receive the monoclonal antibody treatment.  

Vaccines are one of the safest and effective tools we have to protect the health of ourselves and those we love. Take comfort in knowing that when you get COVID-19, flu, Tdap, and RSV vaccines during pregnancy, you help ensure not only a healthy pregnancy, but also give your baby the best possible start to a healthy life. If you have questions about vaccines, talk to your healthcare provider.

Immunize Colorado was formed in 1991 in response to alarmingly low vaccination rates across the state. At the time, only about 50% of Colorado’s children were adequately vaccinated. A group of physicians and other concerned individuals came together to strategize how to protect Coloradans from vaccine-preventable diseases and increase vaccine uptake. Much work remains. Discover ways to support our commitment to healthy Colorado communities at our website or make a donation today!