My baby is due to have his first immunisations. Rather than give him the immunisations now, can I put them off and just keep him away from infections?
A. Delaying immunisations has many disadvantages. It is not practical to keep a baby away from the usual childhood infections. Many infections are catching before the symptoms appear, so just keeping a baby away from people who are obviously infectious would be of limited benefit. Keeping a baby at home and stopping any contact with others would not be enough as babies and children often catch the diseases from an older brother or sister, or from their parents. So, in summary, the best way to protect your baby is for him to have his immunisations when they are due.
