Babies born naturally may have advantage in response to childhood vaccines, researchers say
BOSTON – Babies born naturally may have an advantage when it comes to their response to childhood vaccines.
A baby's gut microbiome is seeded with bacteria during passage through the birth canal, develops over the first few weeks of life, and likely affects a baby's early response to vaccines.
Researchers in Europe studied 101 babies who received routine vaccines against lung infections and meningitis.
They found that those delivered vaginally had higher levels of antibodies in their saliva compared to those delivered by C-section.
Perhaps in the future, babies born by C-section could be supplemented with important bacteria shortly after birth to help jump-start their microbiome and increase their immune response to vaccines.
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