Pediatric Health Chat

Expert Answers and Advice

The mission of Pediatric Health Chat

We are surveying CHOP healthcare professionals to learn what topics families are telling them are common sources of conflicting information. We’ll display the trends on this site each month, so you know what pediatric health misinformation is circulating in your community.

Watch a video from our experts

Are you a CHOP provider who wants to contribute to this project? Complete this survey to share your experiences with misinformation in the healthcare setting.

CHOP providers: See how you can help

Childhood Vaccine Schedules

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommended childhood vaccine schedule reflects decades of scientific evidence showing vaccines are safe, effective, and life-saving. On January 5, 2026, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) shared a new federal framework for the U.S. childhood immunization schedule that was not based on any new scientific evidence. At CHOP, we believe in the importance of vaccines that have long protected children and communities throughout the U.S., and continue to follow the AAP schedule.

Here's why our recommendations remain unchanged >

Did you know vaccines are timed to protect babies when they need it most?

Why It’s Important for Newborns to Get a Vitamin K Shot

Pediatricians recommend an intramuscular shot of vitamin K for babies right after they are born. When parents learn that some countries in Europe offer a form of vitamin K that babies can eat, they wonder why we don’t recommend this oral vitamin K for babies.

Does my baby really need a vitamin K shot? Can’t I just give it to them to eat?

The intramuscular shot is not a vaccine. It’s a vitamin. It gives the baby stores of vitamin K that they don’t get from the placenta or from the milk they drink and helps prevent serious life-threatening bleeding, including strokes.
Some countries in Europe will give vitamin K by mouth. In those countries, they have universal health care and the ability to provide guidance and follow up for all families. Even still, oral formulations of vitamin K are not as good as the shot at preventing bleeding, and many of those countries recommend the shot for families too.
There are other reasons why taking vitamin K by mouth does not work as well as getting the shot. It must be absorbed by the intestines or the gut, and not all babies have intestines that are good at absorbing nutrients from the food they eat. Babies are also known to spit up. Oral vitamin K takes multiple doses to work, and it’s easy to skip or forget them. The single vitamin K shot means less work and worry for the family and their baby.

Why newborns need the vitamin K shot at birth >

Beef Tallow for Eczema

Beef tallow is rendered fat from cows, usually used in cooking, but lately it’s making waves as a “natural eczema cure.” Some research suggests it could theoretically help moisturize skin.

Is beef tallow good for treating eczema?

Research evidence is limited, and some suggest it is possible that the fatty acids in beef tallow could make your child’s eczema worse.
The ideal moisturizer is one that is used regularly and is safe, fragrance-free, free of common allergens, and thick in texture, as in creams or ointments.
Because beef tallow is animal-derived, it can sometimes cause allergic reactions or worsen skin sensitivity, especially for those with eczema.

Learn more about beef tallow for eczema >

Listen to a podcast episode that covers beef tallow for eczema >

Vaccine dosing

We adjust the dosage of medications for kids based on their weight, so it would make sense to think that vaccines would work that same way. But vaccines and medicines have different goals, so they work differently.

Should vaccine doses be weight-based?

Medications work by distribution through the bloodstream. But the immune response generated by vaccination typically occurs at or near the injection site.
Vaccines provide a tiny bit of information that teaches the immune system how to respond if it ever sees the disease. Because of that, vaccine doses are based on how the immune system works at different ages – not on body size.
Some vaccines may differ as a person ages, because our immune system develops and changes as we get older. This relates to our immune system functioning, not our body weight.

Learn more about vaccine safety and dosing here >

Iron Supplementation in Infants

While families may have heard about how infants need vitamin supplements for their babies – vitamin K or vitamin D, for example – some have questions about iron. When babies are first born, many don’t require any iron supplementation – but certain groups will need it after the first few months of life.

Does my baby need to take iron supplements?

Iron is an essential mineral because it helps with making hemoglobin or red blood cells. Those red blood cells carry oxygen to the body and help with energy, growth and development. Having low red blood cell counts is called anemia.
If your baby is exclusively breastfed, it is recommended they take iron supplements starting at around 4 months until they can eat iron-rich foods. This is because breastmilk is low in iron, and any iron they got from the placenta starts to run low around that time.
Among the reasons your baby might need iron supplementation at birth: born prematurely; low birth weight or small for gestational age; and if the mother had diabetes or an issue with the placenta that may have stopped iron from being transmitted to baby.

Learn more about iron supplementation for babies >