Vit K shot question

[maizy]

I'd read somewhere that instead of the vit. K shot we can ask our MW to order an eye ointment. Can anyone speak to this?

We're doing a hospital mw assisted VBAC. I don't want my baby taken away by hospital staff to do shots and other unnecessary tests. Can I opt out of those things? What about the mandatory dr. visit for baby? Is that really mandatory?

Any reading resources to recommend? Thanks

[TaraRae82]

Vit K is definitely something you can decline. It can be given orally if you decide you want it but don't want it in an injection-type. The ointment you're thinking of is probably the eye ointment they give routinely which you can also decline. If you decide you want these, you can request they do it bedside. The hospital we're birthing in will do all infant assessments and anything else that's necessary bedside or while you're nursing. It's a nice option.

[Dahlea]

I'm not doing it-the mw I talked to said the mama can take vit. K drops for a couple weeks before birth to make sure it's readily available in breast milk. She also said you can give the drops to babies.
The eye ointment at the hospital is routinely given to protect from STD's-which if you don't have them, your baby has no need for them, and will be able to see you better without it!

[~Stephanie~]

We birth in the hospital and decline both. We just had to sign a waiver. It wasn't a problem at all.

[Baby_Cakes]

When I mentioned declining the vit k to my midwives, they said they strongly recommend doing it b/c of possibly internal bleeding/bruising (of the baby, that is). Originally I thought it was only a mainstream thing b/c of circ'ing, but does anyone know anything else about it? I guess I could just poke around online, but if anyone has an opinion I'd like to hear it.

TIA!

[triple07]

^^ Hmmm, thats weird. My MWs said they thought it was BASICALLY useless and caused unnecessary irritation/discomfort to the babe...

[mombh]

There is the option of vita K drops given orally to the baby after birth.
It has been shown to as effective as the shot without the side affects.

My midwife also recommends starting alfalfa supplemets at 24 weeks. caps that contain leaf and root. She said it passes through the placenta and is a blood builder with tons of vita K

[TaraRae82]

My OB told me that we could easily decline the Vit K if we weren't going to circ. She said it's only necessary if you plan to circ because of bleeding.

[PassionateWriter]

we decline. Vit. K is useless...all babies are born with low quantiies. of Vit K but can easily get enough if mom is drinking alfalfa tea and baby gets sun exposure. my son was born in northern NH in Jan. and still got enough Vit, K exposure from sun.

[birthdancedoula]

Originally Posted by Baby_Cakes

When I mentioned declining the vit k to my midwives, they said they strongly recommend doing it b/c of possibly internal bleeding/bruising (of the baby, that is). Originally I thought it was only a mainstream thing b/c of circ'ing, but does anyone know anything else about it? I guess I could just poke around online, but if anyone has an opinion I'd like to hear it.

TIA!

I've changed my thinking about Vit. K. I used to be opposed to routine admin to babes but after seeing several kiddos really need it for birth trauma issues it was a good thing. I've given my last 3 babes the oral drops at birth, 3 days, and 5 days. On the 8th day their own stores increase. Babies also get in in small quantities in hindmilk, as its a fat-soluble vitamin. I would say most healthy, term babies are fine w/o it but if you are pushing for a long time, babe has a hematoma, or other birth-related issue causing slight trauma, its a good idea. Excess Vitamin K does not cause harm.

Originally Posted by PassionateWriter

we decline. Vit. K is useless...all babies are born with low quantiies. of Vit K but can easily get enough if mom is drinking alfalfa tea and baby gets sun exposure. my son was born in northern NH in Jan. and still got enough Vit, K exposure from sun.

True babies are born w/ low levels of Vit. K, again increasing on the 8th day. Vit K is fat soluble, and we get it from food and bacterial synthesis by our gut. Are you thinking about Vit D? We synthesize that from sunlight. You might be thinking of sunlight helping to break down bilirubin is a babe who is jaundiced?

[annettemarie]

In keeping with DDC Guidelines, I am moving this to Birth and Beyond.