Research
Research round-up Pregnancy and COVID-19
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New Zealand’s Ministry of Health has updated its advice on COVID-19 vaccines for people who are pregnant and is encouraging you to get a COVID-19 vaccine as part of Group 3 at any stage of your pregnancy.
The Ministry’s website has more information for those who are pregnant or breastfeeding: tinyurl.com/3fnjnss6
Evidence from the large number of pregnant people who have already been vaccinated globally indicates that there are no safety concerns with administering COVID-19 vaccines at any stage of pregnancy. Vaccinating during pregnancy may also be helpful for the baby, as there is evidence of antibody transfer in cord blood and breastmilk, which may offer protection to infants through passive immunity.
When breastfeeding mothers have COVID
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In most countries, newborns have been separated from mothers who have tested positive for COVID. Although intended to safeguard the babies’ wellbeing, this separation can have negative health effects.
Read the article in The Conversation: tinyurl.com/sxtw3cy4
New research from Sweden shows that such measures are almost always unnecessary. Looking at nearly a year’s worth of data, scientists found that a mother being COVID positive during pregnancy or at birth poses very little risk to their baby. Infants are highly unlikely to suffer ill health or an infection as a result.
The World Health Organization’s official advice is that the benefits of breastfeeding far outweigh any potential risks of transmission of COVID-19 to babies: tinyurl.com/dz2tuww
Lockdowns lead to language learning
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An unexpected benefit of more of us being at home more often is that babies and children are being exposed to all the languages spoken by family members. An international study indicates that ‘heritage’ languages were used more often during lockdown periods, and linguists confirm that speaking heritage languages at home can help children grow into bilingual or multilingual adults.
Reports on the study: Stuff: tinyurl.com/psa2hcr3
The UK-based research was conducted with a thousand parents.
46 | KiwiParent
The New York Times: tinyurl.com/myappm5t From the research team’s blog: tinyurl.com/4rsx27xs
