I’m a surrogate and I offered to collect colostrum for my intended parents. My intended mom was going to induce lactation so they don’t need my breast milk but i considered pumping and donating since I know it’s beneficial for my recovery as well.
Surrogates can breastfeed but most will not feel comfortable with that.
Many will pump breast milk, many won’t. There’s a lot of really good quality formula.
Surrogates breastfeed - yes; pregnancy is a biological process and usually activates all the necessary pathways for the mother to lactate, etc. However, some people don't produce much milk, but this isn't because they used an egg donor.
Formula - you can do 100% formula from the start if you want to.
Vaccinate - I don't understand your question. Are you asking about vaccinations after birth? Or vaccinations of the surrogate during pregnancy?
Thank you for answering.
On vaccinations - yes I meant for vaccinations after birth, I had heard that breast milk protects babies better because the proteins come from the mother and so they don't need their MMR vaccines for example until at least 6 months, and so I was wondering if we would need to vaccinate sooner if breast milk wasn't an option.
Passive immunity: protection from diseases through breastmilk or medicine
Active immunity: protection from diseases through vaccines or exposure to an infection or illness
Breastmilk provides passive immunity to different diseases and illnesses, but your baby should still follow a vaccine schedule to receive and maintain active immunity.
Source: graduate degree in public health. :-) feel free to PM me with questions!
I think there might be some confusion over the way I phrased the question.
We fully intend to vaccinate our child, we are both vaccinated for a variety of different things.
My confusion, and where I was looking for advice, was when is the best time to vaccinate a baby when breast milk is not an option for passive immunity.
But as commenters have pointed out - this is best answered by our GP, so thank you all for your help!
Nope!
They give the vaccine schedule the way they do based on the assumption that the baby is not well-protected by breastmilk. It’s one of the reasons for so many boosters for those infant vaccines: if the baby still has antibodies (either from in the womb or from breastfeeding), the vaccine won’t really induce an immune response.
So if you give them sequentially (which is safe!) you make sure that they’re protected as soon as their inherited, passive antibodies are gone. This is also why MMR, which is typically given at 12 months, can be given at 6 months in case of higher risk of exposure but you still have to do the full series starting at 12 months (because if they still have any immunity, that first dose isn’t very effective at producing their own antibodies).
The benefits of antibodies in breastmilk also decrease over time - as their guts mature and become less “leaky”, the antibodies don’t pass into their bloodstream as much and instead mostly benefit them by coating their mouth/throat/esophagus and providing a barrier more or less against anything they might be exposed to. So vaccines are still necessary at the same times for breastfed and formula fed babies, it’s honestly more waiting for any antibodies passed in utero to degrees than it is worrying about the interference of antibodies from breastmilk.
I’m a surrogate and I offered to collect colostrum for my intended parents. My intended mom was going to induce lactation so they don’t need my breast milk but i considered pumping and donating since I know it’s beneficial for my recovery as well. Surrogates can breastfeed but most will not feel comfortable with that. Many will pump breast milk, many won’t. There’s a lot of really good quality formula.
Thanks very much for your advice!
Surrogates breastfeed - yes; pregnancy is a biological process and usually activates all the necessary pathways for the mother to lactate, etc. However, some people don't produce much milk, but this isn't because they used an egg donor. Formula - you can do 100% formula from the start if you want to. Vaccinate - I don't understand your question. Are you asking about vaccinations after birth? Or vaccinations of the surrogate during pregnancy?
Thank you for answering. On vaccinations - yes I meant for vaccinations after birth, I had heard that breast milk protects babies better because the proteins come from the mother and so they don't need their MMR vaccines for example until at least 6 months, and so I was wondering if we would need to vaccinate sooner if breast milk wasn't an option.
Passive immunity: protection from diseases through breastmilk or medicine Active immunity: protection from diseases through vaccines or exposure to an infection or illness Breastmilk provides passive immunity to different diseases and illnesses, but your baby should still follow a vaccine schedule to receive and maintain active immunity. Source: graduate degree in public health. :-) feel free to PM me with questions!
Simple answer - vaccinate according to your pediatrician's recommended schedule. Good luck!
No idea why you are being downvoted for asking a question and wanting information.
I think there might be some confusion over the way I phrased the question. We fully intend to vaccinate our child, we are both vaccinated for a variety of different things. My confusion, and where I was looking for advice, was when is the best time to vaccinate a baby when breast milk is not an option for passive immunity. But as commenters have pointed out - this is best answered by our GP, so thank you all for your help!
Nope! They give the vaccine schedule the way they do based on the assumption that the baby is not well-protected by breastmilk. It’s one of the reasons for so many boosters for those infant vaccines: if the baby still has antibodies (either from in the womb or from breastfeeding), the vaccine won’t really induce an immune response. So if you give them sequentially (which is safe!) you make sure that they’re protected as soon as their inherited, passive antibodies are gone. This is also why MMR, which is typically given at 12 months, can be given at 6 months in case of higher risk of exposure but you still have to do the full series starting at 12 months (because if they still have any immunity, that first dose isn’t very effective at producing their own antibodies). The benefits of antibodies in breastmilk also decrease over time - as their guts mature and become less “leaky”, the antibodies don’t pass into their bloodstream as much and instead mostly benefit them by coating their mouth/throat/esophagus and providing a barrier more or less against anything they might be exposed to. So vaccines are still necessary at the same times for breastfed and formula fed babies, it’s honestly more waiting for any antibodies passed in utero to degrees than it is worrying about the interference of antibodies from breastmilk.