Pregnant and worried about swine flu

I am getting a lot of calls and emails from pregnant women who are 
worried about the swine flu.  As most of us know, during pregnancy a 
woman’s immune system changes to allow her body to carry the baby who 
her body would normally not be so accepting of.

That’s why pregnant women are much more susceptible to colds, and the 
seasonal flu as well as H1N1 or swine flu.  It’s the same reason, we 
advise pregnant women not to eat raw fish and avoid soft cheeses, 
pregnant women are more susceptible to serious complications from 
viral and bacterial infections.

No matter how you feel about vaccinating your children, and that’s a 
long complicated discussion that we can have at another time, getting 
the vaccine for H1N1 is recommended for pregnant women.  That’s 
because since the spring, we’ve seen that when pregnant women get sick 
with H1N1, they are much more likely to develop pneumonia and 
unfortunately some have died.  And these pregnant women who  died from 
H1N1, were healthy before they became pregnant.  So, the message is, 
the worst has happened, and it can happen again this flu season.

I know that everyone reading this, has read the following over and 
over, but it bears repeating:
1. Wash your hands frequently
2. Carry alcohol based hand cleaners
3. Stay away from people who are sick –even if it’s a mild illness, 
because not everyone with H1N1, or swine flu, will have all the 
symptoms. I’ve seen patients who only had a mild cough, and no fever.

Check back frequently for more updates.