A new study has found that antibiotics in infancy may lessen the effectiveness of vaccines. There are many ways for a mom to make sure that her babies and children are safe, and modern medicine has made that a bit easier. This is likely the biggest priority for a mom, so she is always following the advice of her doctors and the latest studies that come out. Infant vaccines are essential for protecting babies from preventable illnesses, and they have come a long way in making sure these illnesses stay in the shadows. The goal is always to make sure they are working as they should.According to Medical Xpress, a study has found that receiving antibiotics in infancy may lessen vaccine effectiveness. The study was published in the journal, Pediatrics, and it can be read in full here.The new research shows that babies and toddlers who had previously been given antibiotics may have a less immune response to the routine childhood vaccines that they receive. This is the first study of its kind to suggest that antibiotics could interfere with vaccine effectiveness. This has prompted researchers to remind parents that more studies will be needed to look at it further.This study was done on the tailbone of a previous work that had shown the results in animals and the reason why this may be is that antibiotics could “kill off” some of the good bacteria that live in the gut. These bacteria play a role in immune function, and that is why they relate to vaccines.Vaccines have always worked by triggering an immune response to a certain illness, and every child’s immune response will be different, but they have not been able to narrow down why these differences occur exactly.
The study used 560 babies and toddlers who had blood samples taken at their check-ups between the ages of 6 months and 12 years. They then used these to measure the antibody response to four of the routine vaccines. When it came to antibiotics, 61% had at least one antibiotic prescription previously. When they looked at the infants who had an antibiotic previously, they found that just over 20% had a strong immune response to a vaccine.
This doesn’t mean that the vaccines “didn’t work” in these children, but their immune response was not as strong as in those infants and toddlers who had never been on antibiotics.
Sources: Medical Xpress, AAP