Many parents are asking if they should get the COVID-19 vaccine against meningitis and flu. The vaccine is marketed as a booster for mothers of babies in their first months of pregnancy. The vaccine has shown to be effective in preventing illnesses such as meningitis and flu in young children.
Meningitis is an inflammation of the tissues surrounding the brain and spinal cord. It can lead to death in some cases, so pregnant women must get vaccinated against meningitis. There have been some studies that indicate that there may be a link between receiving the COVID-19 vaccine and the risk of meningitis in children. That is the subject of another article.
So, what’s the verdict? There is no real need to get vaccinated. The CDC has recommended that women who want to breastfeed should wait until delivery to receive the vaccine. They warn that there may be some harm associated with this timing, but they don’t know how or why.
Men will get the CO-VID-19 vaccine if they have sex with someone whose previous vaccinations against meningitis or flu have failed. If they have sex with someone who has received the vaccine, the risks of getting the vaccine itself will increase. But then again, even if the risk does increase, the vaccination itself will not cause harm. There is a very low risk of any side effects in children or adults. And yet, some parents are still asking if they should get the vaccine.
Some women wonder about the possibility of vaccine hesitancy. They worry that if they choose not to get the CO-VID-19, they may risk contracting meningitis. It is possible, but it is also very rare. So, if you choose not to get the vaccine, you should not blame yourself. You should trust the physician’s advice.
It is good to hear the words, “It’s not the disease, it’s the attitude.” The attitude of a woman towards health and wellness can have a huge effect on her child’s decision about health and wellness. Choosing to delay a vaccine may be a decision based on fear, but it will only be a problem when your child becomes sick and is hospitalized. If you decide to get the vaccine now, your child’s chances for survival are much higher than if she chooses not to get the vaccine because of fears.
There is some information that is not correct. There is no vaccine available for women with meningococcal meningitis and no vaccine currently available for women with influenza. But the one good thing that is said about the CO-Vid-19 vaccine is that it has a high rate of effectiveness, which means that it tends to protect most women who receive it. That means that the number of women with vaccinated meningitis is growing steadily.
Now, other vaccines are being evaluated for women. For example, some researchers are testing vaccines that prevent serious diseases like Alzheimer’s. But, no vaccine has ever been approved for meningitis, flu, or any other disease. It is up to medical professionals to work hard to keep these diseases from growing and becoming deadly.
