Not A Ploy By The Pharmaceutical Companies

Some Americans would understandably react to the news that flu shots save babies with skepticism. After all, flu shots cost money, and that money goes to Big Pharma, which earns billions of dollars with a product everyone needs every year. However, there is a different dynamic between the pharmaceutical companies and the public in Australia where this study was conducted and in the UK where a similar study has been conducted.

Outside the United States, a flu shot isn't something you might have to pay $150 to get at the doctor's office or $50 to get a chain drugstore. Flu shots are free. The drug companies have to provide enough vaccine for everyone at a low cost. The decisions really are about whether or not the vaccine makes people healthier.

The reason the doctors in Australia looked at this question was that they noticed that a few years earlier, during the H1N1 pandemic of a Mexican swine flu in which frantic efforts were made to vaccinate people, stillbirth rates went down. They simply wondered whether influenza might be a cause of stillbirth. The data show that it is. So what should women do?

READ Vaccinations Advised for Newborn Babies

• It's best to get vaccinated for influenza early. If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, that's usually September, the end of summer. In the tropics, it's once a year about the same time every year, since flu season tends to run all year around. In the Southern Hemisphere, vaccination time is March and April.
• Get vaccinated even if you are in the early stages of pregnancy. Unlike some other vaccines, flu vaccine will not harm the baby in the first term. You won't be able to get the nasal spray if you are pregnant. 
• If you have a choice between trivalent vaccine (a product that protects against three strains of flu) and tetravalent vaccine (a product that protects against four strains of flu), get the tetravalent product. This offers more protection for your baby.
• Make sure you get enough iron and vitamin C in your diet, especially around the time you get the vaccine. This helps your immune system respond to the shot.

If you didn't get the flu shot and you come down with symptoms of flu, see your doctor as quickly as possible about getting oseltamivir (Tamiflu) or zanamivir (Relenza) to stop the infection in its tracks. These prescription medications are shown to be safe during pregnancy.

If you choose not to get flu shots, or even if you do, it's always helpful to wash your hands, wash your hands, and wash your hands some more to avoid picking up germs. The flu germ doesn't last very long in the air (you aren't especially likely to catch flu by virtue of someone's sneeze or cough), but it lasts up to 24 hours on hard surfaces. Wiping down counters and door knobs with antiviral products, and washing your hands after leaving your home, help to protect you against the virus.