Vitamin K

Lewa

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So, what are your thoughts about the vitamin K shot they give babies after birth? Are you having it (had for those of you who are already mothers :), would you rather have it as a pill, or not have it at all? And why?
I think I've made up my mind, but not quite sure yet... also, if you've read anything interesting about when deciding for yourself, please share :)

Thanks!!
 
I am getting it given to LO via oral doses - my reasoning is basically want to minimise number of injections LO gets in first couple of years - I don't believe that the new born is deficient of Vit K - there is a reason that the Vit K is low and that is that their blood needs to be thinner so that all the stem cells etc can move around the body faster after birth - also Breast milk is full of Vit K and by day 5 babies who BF have their levels of Vit K back up to what is considered normal - I am compromising by taking the oral dose :)
 
LO had the jab, it is to protect him so it was a no brainer for me


 
I'm going for the injection too - that way it is all done in one go.
 
I am getting it given to LO via oral doses - my reasoning is basically want to minimise number of injections LO gets in first couple of years - I don't believe that the new born is deficient of Vit K - there is a reason that the Vit K is low and that is that their blood needs to be thinner so that all the stem cells etc can move around the body faster after birth - also Breast milk is full of Vit K and by day 5 babies who BF have their levels of Vit K back up to what is considered normal - I am compromising by taking the oral dose :)

That's really interesting jensbump! I didn't know any of that xxxxx
 
Thomas had the jab that was 8 years ago lol this one will have it as well just for safety and my piece of mind xxx
 
yeah, I'm between not giving him any, or the oral doses.

Since ALL babies are born with lower levels it just doesn't make sense to me that it is not meant to be that way, and injecting them with that much so soon after birth seems too much for me.

From what I've read there seems to be a connection between children developing cancer and children getting the vitamin K shot too, although the risk of cancer with the shot is lower than the risk of internal bleeding without it etc.

What I would like the most is to take a vitamin K supplement from now on, and keep taking it for a little while while breastfeeding, to make sure my breastmilk has a lot of vitamin K, and let nature work the way it's supposed to kind of... and only let them give him the tablets IF he is born by ventuose or forceps or similar which could cause internal bleeding.

I also read that epidurals can have an impact on the need of vitamin K as well, so I'm thinking that if I manage to get through everything naturally, then breastmilk should be enough, but if there are complications I'll let him have the pills. I'm wondering what my midwife will think of that though... :p

What I come across a lot when reading up on this is that doctors or midwives often say that they've seen babies suffer from internal bleeding, getting brain damage etc, and seen what it's done to them, so they would definitely do the shot, but the thing is, I know a three year old girl who has leukemia, and I really don't want to put my child at a risk of that either!

I read somewhere (but don't take my word for it) that 1 of 3 babies who had problems because of not getting the shot were born without any complications, while the rest had complications of some sort, or the mother was on medication for something, had been drinking etc, so I'm thinking that in that case if my baby IS born WITHOUT complications then the risk of leukemia with the shot and the risk of internal bleeding without the shot might be quite leveled... and honestly, then I'd rather trust nature...

Also, alcohol or other drugs can increase the risk of the cranial bleeding (the blood clotting problem has to do with the liver), and I've never drunk any alcohol in my life, or done drugs, and not been on any medication during my pregnancy except some paracetamol, and all my blood tests, urine tests, blood pressure etc have been "perfect" as my midwife says, so I just feel like in my case not having the injection might be as good, or even better than having it (if the birth goes well).

At the same time it's hard to make a decision like that when the normal practice is to give the babies the injection!! It's like... how can I defend my position when it's done in hospitals all over England (and the states and other places) all the time....

PS. I only had JensBumps reply when I started typing this, but noticed now that I posted that more people had replied. I don't mean to argue or anything with anyone! Just writing down my thoughts about it.
 
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To be honest I'd rather take the risk than have him bleeding on the brain! They wouldn't give it if it was as risky as some of the Internet sites say!




 
none of the things I have read have said that it is a bigger risk of leukemia (they've said the risk of leukemia is smaller) with it than of cranial bleeding without it, so I don't think what I've read has been tooo biased... I just don't feel quite right about it... :-/
 
Agree with mrsmc, i went with the injection, they give it for a reason, the risks are so small regarding the jabs and I didn't want to risk bleeding in his brain etc and he won't remember it.
 
we're going with the jab - rather than take the risk of bleeding. Also when our midwife described the pro's and cons - and the midwife unit is very "natural" orientated - she said she felt the oral dose was a bit of a waste, as a lot of babies bring it back up so they dont get what they need.

I'll be honest and say ive not really read up an awful lot on this - but the unit im hoping to birth in is very into natural child birth, - water births etc, they have a very low instance of morphine use, a lot of hypnobirthing, etc. When the midwife introduced herself at the class she said she left the hospital for the unit because she wanted to work with birthing less clincal/more natural way - so i trusted that when she said she'd recommend the jab it was "just because"

xxx
 
I'm sorry there is no evidence to show that giving vit k causes cancer in children and to say that to women who are heavily pregnant and want the best for their babies is out of order!!! I'm with mrsmc as well it never did my son any harm so I will go with what drs say than crappy Internet sites!!! Xx
 
I'm sorry there is no evidence to show that giving vit k causes cancer in children and to say that to women who are heavily pregnant and want the best for their babies is out of order!!! I'm with mrsmc as well it never did my son any harm so I will go with what drs say than crappy Internet sites!!! Xx

I dont think Lewa meant it like that - she was just noting what she has read - and although it appears to have been now discredited, - there was at least one research paper that suggested a link - and, like we saw with the MMR/autism research paper - that is enough for some people to be at the very least doubtful.

unfortunately one of the draw backs of living in a technical age where you have access to a LOT of information - rather than just going with the "experts"
 
I'm also a heavily pregnant lady and I also want the best for my baby!
 
I have been thinking a lot about this as I like to trust nature too (I am planning a home water birth) but in some areas I trust medicine for example I am going to give all recommended immunisations to LO because history shows that this is one area where modern medicine has 'done good' imagine if we had to deal with small pox and the like now and I also think it is important to protect children who can't have immunisations by improving herd immunity.

The vitimin K injection isn't as obvious a decision because the risks of not giving it are also very very small and most kids will be fine without it.

In the end I have decided to give vitamin K as they would get it anyway quickly through breast milk so their bodies should be set up to receive lots of vitamin K in the first few days and if they did need to quickly due to trauma from the birth (which might not be obvious) then I'd rather they had it straight away. Also if they had bleeding on the brain from not giving it I'd never forgive myself whereas if they were unfortunate enough to develop cancer later you might wonder but I would never actually know the cause.

It is a tricky one and I'm sorry about the essay just thought it might help to understand my reasoning.
 
Defo injection, I'm all for the vit k I know I'm going to fret anyway when little man is here so don't want to be worrying about that too.

I also know how a brain injury can affect someone, so def want to protect x x
 
It is interesting these days at how many people seem to disregard the advice of the NHS in favour of pieces of research read through the internet. You can pretty much find any evidence supporting (or otherwise) any line of thought on there.

I myself will be putting my trust in our national healthcare system. If I am advised that giving my baby a vitamin K injection will be beneficial for my LOs health, then that is exactly what I will do.

Writing that you believe that giving your child a vitamin K injection will give it an increased risk of cancer is bound to get emotions running high. There will be lots of women on here who have given it to their children already without giving it a second thought on the advice given to them by their care practicioners.

We are all entitled to our opinions of course, so that is just my own two penneth on the topic.
 
As a clinician myself I can safely say that google has made my job soooo much more difficult. I find that patients parents read some very dubious "research" online, come and question our management and I then have to spend valuable time undoing the scaremongering or incorrect info they have found.
I agree completely with parents asking questions but it does cause them unnecessary anxiety and a number do not comply with treatment because of the rubbish they have read online. It's the way of the world these days. I'd only trust info from the likes of the BMJ, a respected and high ranking peer reviewed source.
Information is power but remember that any Tom, dick or Harry can publish on the Internet, chose your source wisely! x
 

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