Since December, when news emerged that two COVID-19 vaccines were approaching emergency use authorization, we have all been warned to expect possible side effects from our injections, as our bodies create immunity against the new coronavirus. However, with everyone prepared for certain common symptoms, patients who have been vaccinated, but have not experienced any side effects, may be wondering if the lack of reaction is a cause for concern. The official vaccine guidance from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes that “some people have no side effects”. But what exactly does it mean if your shot leaves you free of side effects? Read on to find out and for more information on what to do after the injection, see The CDC Says Don’t Take This After Your Vaccine Without a Doctor’s Approval.
Vaccines work by introducing your immune system to a new infection and preparing you to recognize and fight that disease if you actually find it later. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines contain a chain of genetic material called mRNA. When this enters your cells, it causes them to produce a piece of the spike protein that is in the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. Although it does not harm your body or cause COVID-19 infection, it does make your immune system think it is under attack and create a response to fight it. Your healthy cells then overwhelm those that replicated the spike protein, and during that exchange, specific antibodies to COVID-19 are generated and leave you with future protection.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine, in turn, was created using a non-replicating adenoviral vector, in which a tiny piece of genetic material from COVID is inserted into a weakened version of the common cold virus, which has been altered to be able to enter cells, but does not replicate within them, the pharmaceutical company explains. Again, this teaches your immune system to make antibodies against the coronavirus, so that if you come in contact with the real virus later, you will be able to fight it more efficiently. And for more COVID news delivered straight to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.
With so much assurance being offered to the American public that the side effects of the vaccine are nothing to worry about, those without them may be concerned that the lack of side effects indicates that the vaccine has not worked as effectively. But doctors say that is not the case. “If you get this vaccine and you do not experience any side effects, it does not mean that it is not starting a strong immune response,” he explained. Wendell Hoffman, MD, infectious disease specialist at Sanford Health, in an article for the health care company’s website.
Leana Wen, MD, a practicing physician and opinion columnist for The Washington Post, assured readers: “People respond differently to vaccines. Some have side effects – this is normal and is a sign that the body is generating an immune response that will help fight COVID-19 if exposed in the future. Some others have no side effects. This is also normal, and there is no reason to believe that the vaccine is less effective for them. “And to find out more about the most recent side effects being discussed, check out the CDC that has just warned about 3 new side effects of vaccines.
Although much information has focused on the side effects that people can expect after vaccination, those without sore arms or pain expressed concern about the lack of side effects. On the Cleveland Clinic website, someone wrote and asked, “If you don’t experience any symptoms, does that mean the vaccine, or your immune system, is not working?”
In response, Thaddeus Stappenbeck, MD, president of the Cleveland Clinic’s Lerner Research Institute’s Department of Inflammation and Immunity, explained: “When you really look at the trial statistics, most people have no side effects. A little over 50 percent experienced no side effects and remember, they were still 94 percent protected after receiving the vaccine. Therefore, you do not have to worry if you do not experience any symptoms after the COVID-19 vaccinations. “
Stappenbeck added that he hopes that further investigations will reveal why people respond differently to the virus. “With so many people being vaccinated, the medical community is very interested in why some people have all the symptoms and others don’t,” he wrote. “They are still in the process of resolving all of this. We don’t understand that at the moment. “But, he added,” the major vaccines that have been approved for emergency use are effective, regardless of whether or not you develop side effects – and you don’t have to feel awful to prove that you are protected against COVID-19. ”And to learn more about a strange reaction that came up, see Doctors want you to” be prepared “for this delayed vaccine side effect.
If you Does have side effects, the CDC says they come in two varieties. First, the localized reaction to the injection itself, in the form of pain, redness and swelling. And secondly, a response from the whole body, most commonly presented as fever, chills, tiredness, headache, muscle pain or nausea. “In most cases, the discomfort from fever or pain is normal,” they write. However, they say that there are two situations in which you should call your doctor: “If the redness or tenderness where you gave the injection gets worse after 24 hours” or, “If your side effects are worrying you or don’t seem to be goes away after a few days. “And for the most common side effects with the latest vaccine in particular, check out These are the side effects of the New Johnson & Johnson vaccine, says the FDA.