COVID-19 has improved our entire lives, but with the introduction of vaccines across the country, there is finally an end in sight … but only if enough people are actually vaccinated. So if your friend / aunt / colleague tells you that they are considering it not if you get the vaccine, you are understandably worried – for them and for the general population. Your plan of action? Know the facts. We spoke to the experts to find out who should not actually get the vaccine (note: this is a very small group of people) and how to address the concerns of those who are skeptical about it.
Note: The information below relates to the two COVID-19 vaccines currently available to Americans and developed by pharmaceutical companies Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
Who should definitely NOT get the vaccine
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Those under the age of 16. “At present, the available vaccines have not been approved for use under the age of 18 for Moderna and under the age of 16 for Pfizer, because sufficient numbers of younger participants were not included in the safety trials,” said Elroy Vojdani, managing director, IFMCP said. , tells us. “That may change because both companies are currently investigating the effects of the vaccine on adolescents.” But until we know more, young people under the age of 16 should not receive the vaccine.
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Those with allergies to any ingredient in the vaccine. According to the CDC, anyone who has had an immediate allergic reaction, even if it was not serious, should be vaccinated on any ingredient in one of the two available COVID-19 vaccines.
Who should talk to their doctor before getting the vaccine
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People with autoimmune diseases. “There are no short-term indications that the vaccine will increase autoimmunity, but we will have much bigger data on this in the coming months,” says Dr Vojdani. Meanwhile, patients with autoimmune diseases should discuss with their physician whether the vaccine is the right choice for them. “In general, I lean on the fact that the vaccine is a much better option than the infection itself,” he adds.
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Those who have had an allergic reaction to other vaccines or injectable therapies. If you have had an immediate allergic reaction – even if it was not serious – to a vaccine or injectable treatment for another disease, ask your doctor if you should get a COVID-19 vaccine. Note: The CDC recommends that people with a history of severe allergic reactions not associated with vaccines or injectable medicines – such as food, pet, poison, environmental or latex allergies –do are vaccinated.)
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Expectant women. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) says the vaccine should not be withheld from people who are lactating or pregnant. ACOG also claims that the vaccine is believed not to cause infertility, miscarriage, newborn harm or pregnant women. However, because the vaccines have not been studied in people who became pregnant during clinical trials, there are few safety data available to work with.
Wait, so should pregnant women get the vaccine or not?
“Taking the COVID vaccine during pregnancy or nursing is a personal decision,” said Nicole Calloway Rankins, MD, MPH, a certified OB / GYN and host of the All about pregnancy and birth podcast. ‘There are very limited data on the safety of COVID-19 vaccines for pregnant or nursing patients. If you are considering taking the vaccine during pregnancy or breastfeeding, it is important to ask your healthcare provider about your own personal risk, ”she tells us.
For example, if you have underlying health problems that increase your risk of having a more severe form of COVID-19 (such as diabetes, high blood pressure, or lung disease), you may be likely to get the vaccine while you are pregnant or breastfeeding. Similarly if you work in a higher risk environment such as a nursing home or hospital.
‘Remember that there are risks anyway. With the vaccine you accept the risks of side effects against vaccines, which we know so far minimally. Without the vaccine, you accept the risks of getting COVID, which we know can be devastating. ”
In short: if you are pregnant, talk to your doctor so that you can assess the risks and decide if the vaccine is best for you.
My neighbor says they already had COVID-19, does that mean they do not need the vaccine?
The CDC recommends that even those who have had COVID-19 be vaccinated. “The reason for this is that the immunity to the infection is somewhat variable and that it is very difficult to do an individual assessment of it as a deciding factor in whether you should get it or not,” explains dr. Vojdani. “Their response was to recommend vaccination, so that one can be sure that they have the level of immunity shown in the phase 3 studies of the vaccine manufacturers. Since COVID represents such a major global health crisis, I understand it. “
My friend thinks that vaccine is linked to infertility. What should I tell her?
Short answer: it is not.
Long answer: “A protein that is important for the placenta to function properly, syncytin-1, is somewhat similar to the peak protein formed by the reception of the mRNA vaccine,” explains Dr. Rankins. ‘There is a false theory spread that antibodies formed against the vein protein resulting from the vaccine will recognize and block syncytin-1, thus interfering with the functioning of the placenta. The two do share some amino acids, but they do not match the antibodies formed as a result of the vaccine, will recognize and block syncytin-1. ‘In other words, there is no evidence that the COVID-19 vaccine causes infertility.
Why are some members of the Black community so skeptical about the vaccine?
According to the results of a poll by the Pew Research Center published in December, only 42 percent of Black Americans said they would consider vaccination, compared to 63 percent of Hispanics and 61 percent of white adults. And yes, this skepticism makes perfect sense.
Some historical context: the United States has a history of medical racism. One of the most notorious examples of this was the government-backed Tuskegee syphilis study that began in 1932 and enrolled 600 black men, of whom 399 had syphilis. These participants were deceived into believing that they were receiving free medical care, but were only observed for research purposes. The researchers did not provide any effective care for their disease (not even after syphilis was found to be cured in 1947), and as a result, the men experienced serious health problems and death. The study only ended when it was exposed to the press in 1972.
And this is just one example of medical racism. There are many more examples of inequality in health for people of color, including lower life expectancy, higher blood pressure and stress on mental health. Racism also exists in health care (black people are less likely to receive painkillers and experience excessively high mortality rates associated with pregnancy or childbirth, for example).
But what does this mean for the COVID-19 vaccine?
“As a black woman, I also share a long-standing mistrust in the health care system based on the way the health care system has treated us, both historically and currently,” says Dr. Rankins. ‘However, the science and data are thorough and indicate that the vaccine is effective and safe for the vast majority of people. On the other hand, we know that COVID can otherwise kill healthy people and that it can have devastating long-term effects that we are only now beginning to understand, ”she adds.
Here’s another factor to consider: COVID-19 has a serious effect on black people and other coloreds. Data from the CDC show that more than half of the COVID-19 cases in the United States were among black and Latinx people.
For dr. Rankins it was the deciding factor. “I got the vaccine, and I hope most people will get it too.”
Bottom line
It is unclear exactly how many Americans need to be vaccinated to achieve ‘herd immunity’ (ie the level at which the virus will no longer be able to spread through the population). But Dr Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, recently said the number should be between 75 and 85 percent. It is very. So, if you can receive the vaccine, you must.
“It’s understandable to be skeptical about something relatively new, but it’s also important to put emotion aside and look at the objective evidence,” says Dr. Vojani. “The evidence states that the vaccine resulted in a massive decrease in the development of COVID-19 symptoms for those who were vaccinated and prevented hospitalization and death. So far, the short-term side effects appear to be relatively mild and manageable, especially compared to COVID-19 itself, and so far no autoimmune complications have been observed. It is at odds with the infection causing an alarming rate of chronic fatigue and autoimmune diseases. ‘
If someone tells you that they do not want to get the vaccine and are not in any of the above disqualifying groups, you can give them the facts and ask them to talk to their primary care provider. You can also read these words of dr. Rankins conveys: “This disease is devastating, and these vaccines will help stop it, but only if enough of us get it.”
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