January 2013 Moms
mrsodonnell12
member
Newborn Vaccine/Other Poll
mrsodonnell12
member
Just curious where everyone stands on Vit K, eye drops and Hep B for their newborns.[Poll]
Mom to Carter, Kendall, Kiersten and Baby O #4
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Re: Newborn Vaccine/Other Poll
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26 years old, married since June 2009, DS born 1/19/13
Dear Baby Pacheco...
When I started making the poll I realized there were 4379203 options to this! haha!!
Don't feel stupid!!
The eye drops are to prevent the spread of STDs into the eyes of the baby- if you dont have STDs, then there is no risk. What my pedi told me is that the eye drops are harmless so why not do it just in case the lab screwed up your blood work.
The Hep B is the same thing.... it will prevent baby from getting Hep B. Think of the causes of Hep B- using dirty needles, sex with a person with hep b..... so yeah your baby is pretty low risk! As long as you dont have it- I dont see the point of HAVING to do it right when baby is born.
Vit K- Normally the only reason that a newborn would need it is if baby had a traumatic birth/really fast delivery. The problem is that until its too late, you dont know if baby needs vit k- so hospitals now do it for all newborns unless parents object.
Our plan is as follows:
Eye drops when baby gets sleepy- probably 3 hours or so after she is born to allow for a lot of bonding time with us. Once the goop is in their eyes it makes it very hard for them to see.
Hep B: delaying until 2 month check up
Vit K: we will do this around the same time as the eye drops (maybe a tiny bit sooner); we are not doign the oral version- our pedi doesnt recommend it and I just feel like we should just get it over with in a quick second instead of prolonging it.
Dr. Sears is always a good place to read up on this stuff.... other than that google is your friend- just pay close attention to where the information you are reading is coming from.
It should also be noted that the vit K is essentially a substitution for delayed cord clamping. If you delay clamping/cutting the cord (which is starting to be the recommended course of action) baby should get what they need anyway and then they'll start getting natural vit K through colostrum and when their gut begins working they'll start making their own.
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Thank you! I didnt know this! We are delaying the clamping AND EBF so maybe we will skip the vit k.... off to do more research!
This is what we will be doing as well, except we will get the Hep at DS2's first out if hospital pedi appointment. We delay it a few days, so that we don't have a cranky baby for the first couple of days at home.
I didn't realize this either... We are also delaying the clamping and EBF... Hmmm...
DS didn nurse right away- he had a lot of "junk" in his lungs (or something like that) so when I would lay him flat to nurse, he would cough a ton. If you are not able to nurse right away, would you opt for the Vit K?
I will be delaying Hep B probably until they are ready to enter school. For me, the risk is too low to necessitate giving it earlier.
We will also delay clamping, so probably wont be doing the vitamin K. And the eye goop wont be needed as there are no STDs to worry about.
I apologize in advance for my soap box moment. I know this is a controversial hot topic and many will disagree with me, but it's important to be aware of all sides.
I've done quite a bit of research on these, some of it was recommended to me by my chiropractor who also runs a wellness center. Some of it was the result of my own digging. Below I've included our decisions for LO with the links that I feel best summarize the information I've found. Take some time to read it and even research on your own to make an informed decision for your LO. I know we all want to trust our doctors as they are the professionals, but at the same time we live in a world driven by money. Pharmaceutical companies make their money on this stuff and doctors make agreements with them, plus I don't fully trust the FDA either, so this is an area where I think we as parents need to be fully informed.
We would like Vit K to be administered orally. No injections.
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/03/27/high-risks-to-your-baby-from-vitamin-k-shot-they-dont-warn-you-about.aspx
No Hep B vaccine for LO. This will be extremely delayed... I'm talking years, not months.
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/11/03/hepatitis-b-vaccines-at-birth.aspx
No eye drops for our LO.
https://www.givingbirthnaturally.com/silver-nitrate.html
https://childbirth.amuchbetterway.com/newborn-baby-eye-drops-explained/
If you've already decided you don't want these and even other vaccines or are considering it at all after researching, it is important to know there are legal ways around your state laws. The link below will show you the requirements of your state, it's legal exemptions and how to go about documenting them if you so choose.
https://www.nvic.org/Vaccine-Laws/state-vaccine-requirements.aspx
If you've read this far, thank you. I hope you find the information here helpful in making you decision whatever you may choose.
I personally wouldn't. To me, the delayed cord clamping is more important. Now, if the delayed cord clamping couldn't happen I'd probably feel the need for the injection.
I think this is the kind of thing where each person is going to have a different comfort level. I definitely don't think it's as important as it's made out to be in most situations.
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We might do vit K. We haven't discussed it yet with the midwives but last pregnancy it was the on thing they did recommend.
No eye ointment. No Hep B.
Thank you! I am so happy you posted links to your sources. I was very pro skipping vit k and eye ointment- but our pedi said we should really just do it. Now I am back to not wanting it! I just wish all pedi's researched this stuff as much as moms and dads do.... or at least acknowledged that there is controversy over the subject.
We are undecided on the Vitamin K and eye oinment but wanted to delay the Hep B for as long as possible. Unfortunately in Maryland it is required for daycare so our daughter will have to get it before daycare starts.
I think that most pediatricians are more well versed on medical research than any individual mom or dad without a medical degree. I think the difference is perspective. Their opinions come largely from science and overall health of a much larger group than each individual child.
Most pediatrician will acknowledge controversy on these topics, but no offense to the references listed above, most medical professionals would not consider those sources to be "research" or scientific.
At the end of the day you have to do what you feel is best for you and your child. If you don't trust your pediatrician, that's a completely separate issue and I highly recommend finding one who aligns with your beliefs. (For instance we have a pediatrician that will allow us to alter the CDC vaccine schedule and delay shots, but not skip them all together.)
I just don't think it's fair to say that many pediatricians haven't researched these issues.
When I had my daughter I fought with the Dr. who delivered my baby about this and was told by her and my pediatrician that they would not care for my daughter if I rejected the Vit K and eyedrops. I should have fired my pedi right then and there and just refused it, but I caved and let them do it. This all happened right after I delivered when I should have been bonding with my child, not fighting about what I felt in my gut was not the right thing to do.They did let me skip the Hep B vac, but tried to make me feel guilty about it. She also refused to delay cord clamping when I was telling her to, and told me the cord had stopped pulsing about 10 seconds after my daughter was born. I was so angry!
With this pregnancy I have switched practices and am delivering at a very family friendly hospital, so hopefully I will not have to deal with that again. I also have a new pediatrician, we switched when she told me to let my 6 month old cry it out, even if it meant that she made herself throw up. She also said that if she did cry to the point of getting sick I should not comfort her, but just clean it up and let her keep crying. She was crazy!!
I don't want the eye drops since I know I don't have STD's. I would be okay with the oral version of the vitamin K, but would rather skip it altogether. I will not allow the Hep B vac.
Wowza! I'm sorry this was your experience
I'm glad you're with new providers now and I hope things go differently this time!
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Yeah I just completely disagree with you. Unless you have a very progressive peditrician- they most likely just go by the APA recommendations. I think our pedi is great- and we agree on everything but this. She said that she goes with what the hospital reccommends. She is ok with a delayed vacc. schedule, extended breastfeeding, delaying vit k and eye drops and skipping the first hep b vaccine, but she is not ok with skipping the vit k and eye drops all togehter. I asked her why.... she said that she follows the APA. That in no way indicates she has researched anything outside the APA.
Assuming your doctor knows more than you is risky business. Does an OB know more about surgery than me? OF COURSE! They studied it for years... so of course they do. But they cant be an expert in everything... liek labor and delivery. My midwife LOVES it when I come in with research on topics I have found. She has toldme over and over that as a healthcare profession there is just too much information out there that they cannot possibly keep up on it all. That is why they defer to the APA in most/all cases. Challenging your doctor to look into something helps you, your doctor and every patient of your doctor. They are humans after all.
I never said don't challenge your doctor or ask them what they know. And I personally would NEVER chose a pediatrician who couldn't answer tough questions about these topics - period. Nor would I chose a pediatrician who believes there is no discussion outside APA recommendations.
Maybe I just live in a progressive area or got good recommendations from friends with similar views, but every pediatrician I interviewed had discussions with me about the pros and cons (researched based) of everything I thought was controversial enough to discuss. And I was pleasantly surprised at how up-to-date all the ones I talked to were about newer information out there and the controversy on a lot of these issues.
I guess that's where having a doctor that you can trust comes into play. I certainly don't trust someone because *just* because they have a medical degree. And I would never trust one who I couldn't have these conversation with. But what I find online in no way shape or form translates to a medical degree - and that's where the trust issue is important.
That makes sense- I understand waht you are saying. Our pediatrician leaves the final decisions up to us. So if we skip the vit k and eye drops- she wont drop LO and DS as patients- she just highly recommends getting them. Since all of her other views align with ours- I dont think its worth finding a new doc over since we get to make the final call anyway.
And I apologize- I should have been more clear in my post. I wasnt saying you trust someone just because they ahve a medical degree- it was more of a general you. I have friends and family who do whatever there OB says- no questions asked.
I just want to clarify that if there is some sort of traumatic birth (bruising, forceps used etc) then yes we will use the ORAL version.
Because there are side effects to be considered with everything that's administered. It's totally fine to have the perspective you do, and plenty of people do, but just because it's standard procedure you can't really assume it has a basis in evidence.
Personally, I just like to understand the reasons behind why these things are administered and then weigh the pros and cons before deciding on it. And of course the hospital/doctors don't recommend it just for fun, but their allegiance is to larger populations, not individuals. It's easy for them to say sure, smear every baby with antibiotic eye goop just in case there's an STD the mother doesn't know about. It's something with relatively low side effects and if the baby was at risk of contracting an eye infection, sure it helps, but if there's nothing for the baby to catch in the first place it's kind of silly to introduce even topical antibiotics to their system unnecessarily. JMO.
I don't know, I'm just kind of skeptical that we welcome babies to the world by injecting them with things and putting medication in their eyes. I mean, how did the human race survive before these things came into play?! <-- sarcasm
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agreed. i dont know enough about the time frames and what i need to do!