Getting an appointment for the COVID-19 vaccine can be like winning the lottery today. And if you’re lucky enough to score one, you’re likely to want to do everything in your power to make sure things go as smoothly as possible. You have probably heard in recent weeks that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other medical professionals have urged Americans not to do one thing in particular before being vaccinated – taking painkillers like Advil or Tylenol. But now, in a new interview with CBSN, Anthony Fauci, MD, is evaluating the issue – and he is advising which drugs to avoid and what is safe to take with his COVID vaccine. Read on to find out his advice and for more information on what to postpone both before and after the injection, see The CDC says do not do this within 2 weeks of your COVID vaccine.
Fauci said that you should not take any medication that “suppresses an immune response”.
During a February 25 interview with CBSN as part of its A dose of hope: vaccine questions answered Special, a vaccine administrator in New Jersey wrote to ask Fauci: “Patients often ask me whether they should take painkillers before or after the vaccine is injected. I’ve heard mixed advice. What do you think?”
Although the White House COVID consultant did not specify whether his response referred to the pre- or post-vaccine, he explained: “The mixed advice is based on the fact that there is very little data on this. I mean, if you are going taking something that suppresses an immune response, so obviously, you don’t want to take something like that. “
Fauci added, however, that there is an exception: “if you are taking for an underlying illness”. (Here is a long list of immunosuppressive drugs for your reference.) And for a vaccine that may already be offering some immunity, check out This other vaccine may be protecting you from COVID, says the study.
The CDC and other medical experts advise against pre-vaccinating some OTC drugs.
In mid-February, the CDC updated its vaccine guidelines to warn patients not to take ibuprofen (Motrin and Advil), paracetamol (Tylenol), aspirin or antihistamines before their vaccines. “It is not recommended that you take these drugs before vaccination in order to try to prevent side effects, because it is not known how these drugs can affect how well the vaccine works,” says the CDC website, echoing Fauci’s comments on the lack of data.
The reason health professionals warned against using Advil or Tylenol before the injection is because, as experts at the University of California, Irvine explain, taking these drugs “before receiving a vaccine can reduce your ability to function and dull your immune system response to the vaccine. “And for more COVID news delivered straight to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.
Specifically, you should not take any anti-inflammatory drugs, said Fauci.
In his interview with CBSN, Fauci added that, “something that is a true anti-inflammatory, like one of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, should not be given.” The most common non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are high-dose aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, Midol) and naproxen (Aleve, Naprosyn), reports Heathline. Again, it is not clear whether Fauci was referring to the pre-vaccine, post-vaccine, or both.
But Ashley Ellis, PharmD, director of clinical operations at Compwell, said earlier Better life that anti-inflammatory drugs “block a pathway called a cyclooxygenase-2 (cox-2) enzyme” – and your body needs these enzymes to be able to produce antibodies against the virus and build immunity. And to learn more about what you shouldn’t do in terms of vaccines, check out the CDC Says Don’t Do This With Your Second Shot of Your COVID Vaccine.
But, according to Fauci, you can take Tylenol for its side effects.
However, if you are having side effects as a result of the vaccine and want to take some medication, Fauci suggests taking one or two Tylenol. “If someone gets a headache or pain and it is really bothering you, I mean, I believe, as a doctor, that I would have no problem taking a couple of Tylenol for that,” he said. “People are going to stand back and forth and say, ‘Well, that can silence or decrease the immune response to the vaccine itself.’ I don’t see any biological mechanism why something like Tylenol wouldn’t do that. “
Fauci explained that “if you are really feeling discomfort … taking something – a pill or two, like two Tylenol, every six or eight hours or so – I can’t see if there will be a big difference [on the effectiveness of your vaccine]. This can make you feel a lot better. “And to find out more about the side effects you should expect, see the CDC states that these three side effects mean that your vaccine is working.
The CDC says that Tylenol, Advil and other OTC drugs are safe after the vaccine.
Although the CDC advises against ibuprofen, acetaminophen, aspirin or antihistamines before your injection, they say “you can take these medications to relieve the post-vaccination side effects, if you have no other medical reasons preventing you from taking these medications usually.” And for the latest news on Pfizer vaccines, see The CEO of Pfizer says the need for a COVID vaccine is frequent.