Vaccination and pregnancy: During pregnancy

During flu season, anyone who's pregnant or planning to become pregnant should get the flu shot. The flu is more likely to cause severe illness during pregnancy because your body goes through many changes. These changes can:

• affect the immune system, heart and lungs
• make it harder for your body to fight off infections

Receiving the flu vaccine during pregnancy extends protection to your baby. This is important because babies younger than 6 months can't get vaccinated against the flu. Your flu shot helps protect your baby from the flu after birth.

Vaccination with a non-live flu vaccine lowers the risk of complications from the flu during pregnancy and after your baby is born. However, live (attenuated) flu vaccines shouldn't be given during pregnancy.

Learn more about the flu vaccine.

During each pregnancy, you should get the Tdap vaccine, even if you've received it before. You should get it when you're between 27 and 32 weeks pregnant.

Whooping cough (pertussis) is particularly dangerous for infants under 2 months of age because they're too young to be vaccinated. When you get the Tdap vaccine in pregnancy, you produce antibodies that protect your newborn during the first months of life.

Learn more about:

• Tetanus
• Diphtheria
• Whooping cough (pertussis)

The hepatitis B vaccine may be recommended during pregnancy for certain high-risk groups.

Learn more about hepatitis B.

Your health care provider may recommend other vaccines in certain high-risk situations. For example:

• if you're travelling to an area where a disease is common
• if you've been exposed to a disease
• during an outbreak
• when indicated due to a health condition or other risk factors