This piece is sponsored by Avera Health.
Soon after birth, babies receive a variety of shots, including one for vitamin K. This is a supplemental nutrient and not a vaccine, given to help with blood clotting. Recently, more parents are opting not to give their newborns the boost of vitamin K, a highly advised preventive measure.
“Building a trusted, open and honest relationship with your OB/GYN and pregnancy care team will help you understand why we recommend what we do,” said Dr. Katherine Wang, a neonatologist with Avera Children’s. “Then you can make informed decisions regarding your pregnancy and baby.”
Here are some facts to keep in mind.
Why do parents opt not to give their newborns the vitamin K shot?
After the COVID-19 pandemic, people are more hesitant about what preventive measures are being promoted in health care. During that time, opinions ranged from genuine concern to unfounded suspicion.
“The vitamin K shot was an innocent bystander that got caught in the crossfire,” Wang said. “Because it’s an injection, it got lumped into the vaccine category. People were cautious and confused, ultimately leading to misinformation.”
In addition, people started expressing concerns over preservatives in the vitamin K shot. Wang reassures that Avera uses a preservative-free form of vitamin K.
What is the vitamin K shot and what does it do?
The vitamin K shot is simply a vitamin. Human bodies do not produce vitamins. Just like how you eat a varied diet or how you take a daily multivitamin or a vitamin C or D supplement, the vitamin K shot is a concentrated dose of just that: vitamin K.
Like other nutrients, vitamin K assists in how the body naturally functions. Think of how vitamin D supports your body’s ability to absorb calcium or how vitamin C assists in the production of collagen — vitamin K has an important job too.
“Vitamin K helps humans form clots and prevent uncontrollable bleeding,” Wang said.
Why does a newborn need a vitamin K boost?
Babies are born with very low levels of vitamin K; they don’t receive much from mom in utero, and breast milk has very low levels of vitamin K. Levels can be even lower if mom was on any medications during pregnancy that disrupt the processing of vitamin K, such as anti-seizure medications, blood thinners and some antibiotics.
Why is the vitamin K shot so important for babies?
“The vitamin K shot is very important for full-term newborns and extremely important for premature babies,” Wang said. “If we don’t give babies vitamin K at birth, they’re at high risk of uncontrolled bleeding because of their naturally lower levels of vitamin K.”
This is called vitamin K deficiency bleeding, or VKDB, or hemorrhagic disease of the newborn. The most common places of bleeding for newborns are in the head, the gut or the circumcision site. By giving your baby the vitamin K shot, you’re taking away the risk of vitamin K deficiency bleeding.
“If you refuse the vitamin K shot and your newborn starts bleeding, it could become a life-or-death situation,” Wang said. “The symptoms, should they appear, can be irreversible.”
There are three types of vitamin K deficiency bleeding:
Early onset – Uncontrolled bleeding occurs within the first 24 hours of life.
Classic – Uncontrolled bleeding happens within two days to one week of life.
Late onset – Uncontrolled bleeding occurs one week to eight months of life.
This one shot alleviates the risk of all three types.
How is the vitamin K shot different from a vaccine?
Vaccines, or immunizations, are designed to decrease the severity of infections. When you receive a vaccine, you are training your body’s immune response to fight a future infection. It’s a proactive health choice.
“The vitamin K shot has nothing to do with vaccines,” Wang explained. “It’s a vitamin, a supplemental nutrient that supports your body’s function in blood clotting.
And this is the case with the risk of vitamin K deficiency bleeding — the fix is prevention.
Does the vitamin K shot have to be given by injection?
While there is an oral form, it is not recommended because it is not as effective as the injection. Babies who receive oral supplementation can still have uncontrolled bleeding. Babies’ intestines are immature and cannot absorb vitamin K well. In addition, there is no licensed oral form of vitamin K available in the U.S.
Are there any concerns with the shot?
Currently, the biggest risk is skin irritation at the site of the injection, which is the typical, universal concern with any injection. In very rare cases, babies may have an allergic reaction to the shot. It’s difficult to know whether a newborn will have an allergic reaction, but since most reactions happen within moments after the shot, your physician can spot it immediately and deliver care.
Get more newborn and child wellness tips at Avera.org/Balance.
