Coronavirus vaccines not transferred to infants through breast milk: US researchers

By Zehra Nur Duz

ANKARA (AA) - Coronavirus “vaccine-related mRNA” is not transferred to infants through breastfeeding, according to a new research published in the US.

Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, reported that vaccine-associated mRNA, the active components of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, "was not detected in 13 milk samples collected 4 to 48 hours after vaccination from 7 breastfeeding individuals," United Press International (UPI) reported.

The research team said women, who wonder if the vaccine is safe for their babies, do not have to choose between vaccination and breastfeeding, based on the results.

The team noted that if minute amounts of mRNA managed to make it to breast milk, the genetic material would still "undergo degradation by the infant gastrointestinal system," UPI reported.

Researchers underlined that a more comprehensive trial is needed to fully verify the findings.

The study was published on Tuesday in JAMA Pediatrics, a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal published by the American Medical Association.

Since December 2019, the pandemic has claimed nearly 4 million lives across the world, with more than 184.6 million cases reported worldwide, according to US-based Johns Hopkins University.