Whooping cough (medically known as Pertussis) is a serious infection that causes long bouts of coughing and choking, making it hard to breathe. The ‘whoop’ is caused by gasping for breath after each bout of coughing, though babies don’t always make this noise.

Getting vaccinated while you are pregnant may help to protect your baby from developing whooping cough in the first few weeks of their life.

The immunity you get from the vaccine will pass to your baby through the placenta and provide passive protection for them until they are old enough to be routinely vaccinated against whooping cough at two months old.

There is no evidence to suggest that the whooping cough vaccine is unsafe for you or your unborn baby.