Myths About the COVID-19 Vaccine During Pregnancy

By now, you've likely heard that leading health officials and experts from groups such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the Society for Maternal Fetal Medicine (SMFM) strongly recommend that all pregnant women get the COVID-19 vaccine. We know that pregnant women are more vulnerable to complications from COVID-19, including hospitalization, intubation and preterm birth, and data shows that the vaccines are safe and effective during pregnancy.

"If you look at the literally — literally — tens and tens and tens of thousands of women who have been followed by the CDC who were vaccinated when they were pregnant, there's no indication whatsoever that there's any increase of any adverse issues in a pregnant woman who was vaccinated compared to a pregnant woman who wasn't vaccinated," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and Chief Medical Advisor to the President, in an interview with What to Expect founder Heidi Murkoff. "It's really one of those things that's kind of not a close call. It really is pretty clear that pregnant women should get vaccinated."

That's why the CDC issued a statement recommending "urgent action" to increase COVID-19 vaccination among pregnant people.

Still, it's understandable if you've been on the fence or are feeling a little nervous about getting your shot, whether it’s the original series or booster. After all, none of us have experienced a pandemic before, and it can be especially confusing when your social media platforms are flooded with misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine.

Below, seven common myths you may have heard about the COVID-19 during pregnancy — plus why they're untrue.

Myth: The COVID-19 vaccine causes infertility

This viral rumor started making the rounds on social media and blogs early on. But leading experts including ACOG, SMFM, the American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) have all issued statements stressing that there’s no evidence that COVID-19 vaccination will affect your fertility.

Rumors about the COVID-19 vaccine and fertility are not rooted in science. "There have been hundreds and hundreds of millions of people now who've been vaccinated throughout the world," notes Dr. Fauci. "There's no indication whatsoever that the vaccine interferes with fertility in a woman or fertility in a man's ability to impregnate a woman. No evidence whatsoever."

Last year, research from the CDC's V-Safe COVID-19 Vaccine Pregnancy Registry found that 4,800 women went on to have a positive pregnancy test after receiving a first dose of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine (Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna). Another paper followed three groups of women undergoing in vitro fertilization: those who had antibodies from recent COVID-19 infection, those with antibodies from vaccination and those without any antibodies. They found absolutely no differences between all three groups.

Myth: The COVID-19 vaccine is "experimental"

The speed at which the vaccines were developed has caused some to question their safety. But it’s important to remember that one reason why the COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna could be created so quickly is that their method had been in development for years, notes William Schaffner, M.D., an infectious disease specialist at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee. No safety testing steps were skipped in the process.

What's more, mRNA vaccines such as the ones from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna are hardly new. These vaccines contain messenger RNA, or mRNA, a genetic material that tells your body how to make proteins. (Unlike what you might have heard, they do not contain live virus.) Researchers have studied mRNA vaccines for decades and we have plenty of strong safety information about them.

Myth: You're more likely to experience side effects if you're pregnant

Research shows that pregnant women do not have a greater risk of experiencing side effects from the COVID-19 vaccines. A survey published in the journal JAMA Network Open of more than 17,500 pregnant, planning to become pregnant and breastfeeding women who received the COVID-19 vaccine found that they didn’t have more severe symptoms than non-pregnant people.

While some pregnant women report nausea or vomiting after the vaccine, it’s hard to tell if that’s from the vaccine or just pregnancy queasiness in general, notes Oluwatosin Goje, M.D., an OB/GYN at the Cleveland Clinic and member of the What to Expect Medical Review Board. If you have any side effects after vaccination, talk to your practitioner about taking over-the-counter acetaminophen (Tylenol) for any pain or fever you experience.

Myth: You don’t need the vaccine if you’re otherwise healthy

Even if you're in perfect health, there are serious risks to not getting vaccinated. Pregnant women and their babies have far greater risk of hospitalization and intubation from COVID-19, as well as preterm birth and other complications. A review of 42 studies of more than 400,000 pregnant women found that those who developed severe COVID-19 were also more likely to have preeclampsia, premature birth, stillbirth, gestational diabetes or babies with low birth weight. 

"What we know for sure is that if a pregnant woman gets infected and gets COVID-19 there are serious consequences for the pregnant woman herself, for the pregnancy and for the fetus," says Dr. Fauci.

Although vaccinated people are much less likely to get COVID-19, it's true that the vaccines can’t prevent the disease entirely. But if you're vaccinated and do develop a breakthrough case, you’re much more likely to have mild symptoms that won’t land you in the hospital or risk either your or your baby’s life.

Myth: You don’t need the vaccine if you’ve already had COVID-19

Unfortunately, you can get sick with COVID-19 even if you’ve had the disease in the past — and that’s especially true as more variants continue to circulate. "If you get COVID-19, it might offer some natural protection or immunity from reinfection for a short time, but it’s not clear how long this protection lasts, or how effective it is against variants," notes Dr. Schaffner.

In fact, unvaccinated people who already had COVID-19 are more than twice as likely than fully vaccinated people to get the disease again, according to a study published in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Since reinfection is possible and COVID-19 can cause severe medical complications during pregnancy, it's essential to get vaccinated even if you've tested positive before.

Myth: You shouldn't get the COVID-19 vaccine during your first trimester

The COVID-19 vaccine is safe to get at any time during pregnancy, leading experts say. "Pregnant women have always received vaccines in pregnancy, including during their first trimester, without any harm to their baby," notes Dr. Goje. "They also still mount robust antibodies, so we know they’re protected against disease."

If you are currently pregnant and eligible for a booster shot, you can also get the booster at any point during pregnancy.

Some moms-to-be worry that getting vaccinated in the first trimester could increase risk of miscarriage. But research has been reassuring, and shows that pregnant women who have received the mRNA vaccines have similar pregnancy outcomes to expecting moms before the COVID-19 pandemic and no higher risk of miscarriage. One CDC study followed nearly 2,500 women who were vaccinated early in their pregnancies (before 20 weeks) and did not find an increased risk, for example.

"Tens of thousands of pregnant people have safely been vaccinated and there have been absolutely no signals the vaccines are unsafe in pregnancy," says J. Martin Tucker, M.D., FACOG, president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. 

What's more, the risks of waiting are serious. "The best time to get vaccinated against COVID-19 during your pregnancy is as soon as you can," says Dr. Goje

Myth: The Pfizer shot is unsafe during pregnancy

The COVID-19 Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is safe and recommended during pregnancy. However, some debunked social media posts show "Pfizer" documents stating that the company’s vaccine is not safe for pregnant or breastfeeding women. In fact, the screenshots come from a 2020 report from Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare Products and Regulatory Agency (MHRA), and they mean something else. 

The MHRA documents state that there was a lack of data when they were published in 2020. Since then studies have repeatedly shown that there is no difference in miscarriage rates or pregnancy outcomes in women who received the Pfizer vaccine before or during pregnancy compared to those who didn’t (or any vaccine, for that matter.) The MHRA now strongly recommends COVID-19 vaccination for pregnant and breastfeeding women.