Health council backs vitamin K jabs over drops for new babies

Newborn babies should be given a vitamin K jab instead of drops to prevent blood clotting problems, national health council Gezondheidsraad has said in new recommendations.

A lack of vitamin K can cause excessive bleeding, including in the brain, leading to damage and sometimes death, the council said. Compared to countries that have already introduced injections, more babies in the Netherlands experience bleeding because of a lack of vitamin K.

Vitamin K is currently administered orally during the child’s first three months but an injection will be more effective, particularly in babies whose intestines are unable to absorb the vitamin due to a medical condition, the council said.

Babies who are breastfed are more likely to lack sufficient vitamin K than babies who are getting vitamin K-rich formula.

“Injected vitamin K is easily absorbed by the body,” health council chairwoman Karien Stronks told broadcaster NOS. “It’s a one-off injection and easy to do. An injection also saves parents from having to administer drops every day,” she said.

The council has been recommending jabs over drops since 2017 but the organisation of midwives KNOV rejected the move, citing cost, high work pressure, and the fear that vaccination levels would fall even more.