The COVID-19 vaccine...is it safe?

The COVID-19 vaccine...is it safe? How'd they come up with it so fast? Are the rumors about the vaccine true?!

There is a lot of hesitancy and disinformation among the Black community regarding the new Covid-19 vaccine. This hesitancy is rooted in a history of racism and medical malpractice against Black citizens. The legacy of the Tuskegee experiment and forced eugenics still lingers creating a generation of mistrust among Black people old and young. But why should Black people trust the new Covid-19 vaccine? Black, Hispanic and Native American people infected with Covid-19 are about four times more likely to be hospitalized than others, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows.The number of Covid-19 cases among Black and Hispanic children and across all ages is higher than other groups. Black and Hispanic people infected with the virus also died at disproportionately higher rates last summer (Howard 2020).Black people are also dying at a rate 2.4 times higher than Whites, according to the COVID Tracking Project. Native Americans and Latinos are also dying at about 1.5 times the rate of that of Whites and Asian Americans (Carroll 2020). To dispel some of these rumors and to provide more information on the vaccine, GIPR President, Dr. Jacqueline Cheatham-Terry, D.O. breaks down disinformation about the vaccine and why you should get vaccinated.

How do we filter out truth from fiction, living in the digital world? 

It is easy to feel overwhelmed with the amount of information (and some misinformation) circulating in regards to the COVID-19 vaccines. Hopefully, this post will clarify and dispel some of the information you may have come across. I am speaking specifically about the mRNA vaccines, by Pfizer and Moderna. Though the timeline for the creation of the vaccine seems pretty fast, the technology behind mRNA vaccines has been in development for over 10 years. This is just the first opportunity they have had to use the technology in mass production an effort to fight viral infections.

Messenger RNA (mRNA) is a precursor to DNA, the blueprint of all living things. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines contain mRNA for some proteins found on the surface of the COVID-19 virus. It codes for those proteins strictly for recognition purposes and doesn't contain any genetic material that "can reactivate" and infect you with the virus. Your body will take up that mRNA for those surface proteins and begin to transcribe it to DNA. Then your body will start to produce those surface proteins. This will "wake up" your immune system as it will recognize "hey those aren't supposed to be here!" Then your immune Tcells will say to your Bcells..."you see those proteins over there? Get rid of them and if they ever return again, you kick them out on sight!" Essentially the vaccine, is training your immune cells to recognize the virus so that the virus doesn't have as much ability to make you sick.

This brings me to my next point....Yes, the 2nd vaccine after effects are usually worse than the 1st. Now your body recognizes the proteins and the immune response is more pronounced. However, any feelings of fatigue, bodyaches, muscle soreness or even fever should be viewed as a visual representation of your immune system reacting appropriately. Not everyone experiences these symptoms post vaccination, but if you do, no need to worry! It is self limited to 48-72 hrs.

Can I still catch COVID-19 if once vaccinated? Yes! About 2 weeks after the initial vaccination, you are about 50% protected from infection. 2 weeks after the 2nd vaccination, you will be about 90% protected. For those asking, "well what about that 10%?! Yes it is true, you can still test positive for the virus but it is unlikely to cause the severity of illness we have been seeing or that causes hospitalization.

What if I am allergic?

No one is allergic to mRNA, however it is possible to be allergic to the polysorbate polymer used to encapsulate the vaccine. Unfortunately, this polymer is not something commonly found in products, so you likely wouldn't know you are allergic until you received the 1st vaccine. This is why all vaccination sights should monitor you for 15 - 20 minutes post vaccination to monitor for any signs of anaphylaxis. If so, you would quickly be treated for such a reaction. 

Why should I get vaccinated? I know plenty of people who got infected and were fine.

COVID-19 has killed over 550,000 people in the US, and almost 3 million world wide. This includes people of all ages, sex,  races, and socio-economic status'. There is no accurate way to predict who will and won't have severe complications to the infection. There is no cure for this virus. The medical community world wide has created some new therapies to mitigate the severity of infection but it does NOT cure the virus. Viruses are living organisms and are constantly trying to find a way to secure its survival. This is why we are seeing the variant strains of the virus, because it is adapting to try and survive. Our only chance of getting a hold of this thing, and life as we know it returning to some sense of normalcy is to get vaccinated, continue due diligence with social distancing, wearing a mask in public, and limiting large gatherings that could serve as a spreader event. 

Hopefully this answers many of the questions you may have, but if not, you can turn to the CDC for the most updated information.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

-Dr. Jacquelyn Cheatham-Terry D.O.