2006-08-27 09:56:00 · 3 answers · asked by Melanie P 1 in Health ➔ General Health Care ➔ Other - General Health Care
About six months. Nursing extends it a little longer.
2006-08-27 09:59:17 · answer #1 · answered by nora22000 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Transplacental immunity plays a very minor role in a newborn's immune system - a few days at most. Breast feeding does provide the newborn with antibodies from the mother's breast milk. Pediatric standard practice for infants ages 0 to 6 months of life is to treat the patient as if he/ she has no immune system. The latter is why, when an infant has a fever, he/ she is given a complete sepsis (i.e. infection) workup, which includes: testing spinal cord fluid, blood and urine. Vaccines are usually give after 1 month, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months of life. However, there are some exceptions. For example, some hospitals give the Hepatitis B vaccine at birth -Hepatitis B requires three vaccinations usually given at 1 month, 3 months and 6 months of life. An infant's immune system really starts developing at 6 months of life but is not fully developed until 1 year of life.
2006-08-27 18:04:58 · answer #2 · answered by What the...?!? 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Immunizations do not offer lifelong immunity, nor is the presence of antibodies a guarantee that you will be immune to a disease.
Your innate immune system still seems to be the most effective, and the safest.
2006-08-27 17:06:57 · answer #3 · answered by RobsVision 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋