TORONTO \u2014 Canada\u2019s gynecologists say COVID-19 vaccination \u201cremains safe and strongly recommended\u201d during pregnancy and while breastfeeding.<\/p>\n
The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada issued the assurance Wednesday, a day after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — a longtime anti-vaccine activist — declared the shot is no longer recommended for healthy children and pregnant women south of the border.<\/p>\n
Pregnant women who become infected with COVID-19 are at higher risk of severe illness requiring hospitalization and intensive care than women who are not pregnant, the SOGC said.<\/p>\n
Getting the COVID-19 vaccine also helps protect against serious complications associated with the virus, such as preterm birth, it said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have mounting, increasing scientific evidence about the impact of COVID-19 infection or other respiratory viruses on pregnant people and how vaccination does reduce that,\u201d Dr. Darine El-Chaar, a maternal fetal medicine specialist at The Ottawa Hospital said in an interview.<\/p>\n
El-Chaar, who was also speaking on behalf of the SOGC, said pregnant women remain a priority population for COVID vaccination in Canada and that the shot also provides some immunity against the virus for the baby.<\/p>\n
Kennedy\u2019s move to discontinue the shot in the U.S. is not based on any medical evidence, she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s been no study, there\u2019s been no clinical trial, no follow-up studies that have suggested any adverse outcomes or impact from COVID-19 vaccination in pregnant populations or infants … that would scientifically influence the decision made by the authorities in the U.S.,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Citing \u201can age of growing misinformation and disinformation,\u201d the SOGC urged women and health-care providers to rely on \u201cevidence-based science and clinical expertise\u201d to make vaccine decisions.<\/p>\n
El-Chaar said that it was important for the group to issue a statement to reassure pregnant women in Canada who see U.S. misinformation on the news or in social media.<\/p>\n
Pregnant women should get a COVID-19 shot, especially if they had their last vaccination more than six months ago, she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI talk about \u2018one vaccine, two lives.\u2019 You\u2019re protecting the mom and the baby,\u201d El-Chaar said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
TORONTO \u2014 Canada\u2019s gynecologists say COVID-19 vaccination \u201cremains safe and strongly recommended\u201d during pregnancy and while breastfeeding.<\/p>\n
The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada issued the assurance Wednesday, a day after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — a longtime anti-vaccine activist — declared the shot is no longer recommended for healthy children and pregnant women south of the border.<\/p>\n
Pregnant women who become infected with COVID-19 are at higher risk of severe illness requiring hospitalization and intensive care than women who are not pregnant, the SOGC said.<\/p>\n
Getting the COVID-19 vaccine also helps protect against serious complications associated with the virus, such as preterm birth, it said.<\/p>\n