Nursing and vaccines: Two good things, great together

The Pediatric Insider

© 2017 Roy Benaroch, MD

Stefanie wrote in:

My question is related to the MMR vaccine. Would it be better to stop breastfeeding at 11 months and then get the MMR 1st shot vaccine at 12 months? Or did I understand correctly that the maternal antibodies from breastmilk will not interfere with the MMR vaccine to work? If they do not have an effect on neutralizing the vaccine, I would prefer continuing to breastfeed.

Stefanie, you can continue to nurse if you’d like – there’s no recommendation for anyone to stop or delay nursing before any vaccine.

What Stefanie is talking about here are the immunoglobulins in breast milk, and whether they could somehow interfere with the effectiveness of vaccinations. There are no clinical studies that have shown this to be a problem for MMR or any other vaccine. Breast milk antibodies don’t make vaccines less effective or less safe.

One study of a different vaccine, one that protects against the diarrheal illness caused by rotavirus, confirmed that breast milk contains antibodies against the virus. The titers of these antibodies were especially high among women from the developing world, compared with women from the United States. The authors speculated that this might explain why the vaccine is more effective in more-developed countries, and proposed a study to see if delaying (not stopping) breast feeding could make the vaccine more effective. In the US, the rotavirus vaccine is highly effective at preventing severe disease and hospitalization, both in nursing and formula-fed babies. Moms can continue nursing right before or after the vaccine is given (it would be awkward to nursing during administration of this vaccine—it’s given orally. Not sure how that could be done.)

I’ve had a run of questions about nursing and vaccinations, some implying that breastfeeding is better than vaccinations, or that vaccinations and breastfeeding are somehow competing with each other, or that those that support vaccinations are somehow shortchanging or weak on breastfeeding. These kinds of stories seem to be a new “fad” among those who wish to sow an overlay of vague mistrust and doubt about vaccinations. Please, the science is overwhelmingly positive. Don’t rely on the Googlers and scaremongers. Immunizations are safe and effective. You do not need to worry. Protect your children. Vaccinate.

 

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Tags: breastfeeding, immunizations, nursing, vaccines

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