Refinery 29
The COVID-19 vaccine will not make you infertile
COVID-19 vaccines are on their way to becoming a key tool in the fight against the pandemic: vaccination gives immunity to the virus, helping to stop the spread and keep everyone safe. That is why it is so important that everyone gets vaccines – and why the myths circulating about vaccines, including that they can cause infertility or are not safe for pregnant women, are so damaging. “There are a lot of people concerned about the vaccine and the safety of the vaccine, and I think this is a result of how much misinformation has been reported,” Iahn Gonsenhauser, MD, director of quality and patient safety at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, says Refinery29 . Although most Americans are willing to get a vaccine, 27% of people are still hesitant, a Kaiser Family Foundation survey in December found. Many of these people fear possible side effects, the research showed, despite health officials emphasizing vaccine safety. A widely shared post on Facebook called the COVID vaccine “female sterilization”. It contains a peak protein known as syncytine-1, said the post, which is important in creating the placenta. The post states that the vaccine will cause people to form an immune response against that specific protein, causing fertility problems. Dr. Gonsenhauser says, “This is simply, completely false.” “There is no evidence to suggest that this vaccine would affect fertility and this is not a reason for not getting the vaccine,” said Abisola Olulade, MD, family medicine physician in San Diego. Another false and fear-promoting post on Facebook – shared by a naturopath – says that “they” don’t want women in Moderna tests to conceive a month after the second dose of the vaccine. The naturopath concluded that this means that the vaccine is not safe to be administered to pregnant women, but, again, there is no evidence to support these claims. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have authorized pregnant women and those trying to conceive to receive the vaccine, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists agrees, recommending that COVID-19 vaccines “not be denied” to pregnant women who attend vaccination criteria and should also be offered to breastfeeding people. There are limited data on the safety of receiving COVID vaccines during pregnancy. Pregnant women are usually excluded from clinical trials because of concerns about how to harm the fetus (although many argue that keeping pregnant women out of trials causes their health needs to be underrepresented). Twenty-three participants in the Pfizer study became pregnant during the study, but this is too small a sample to tell us much. Dr. Olulade says that people who are pregnant, breastfeeding or trying to get pregnant should talk to their doctor before getting the vaccine (everyone should!). “Ultimately, it is about weighing the risks of the unknown when it comes to the vaccine in pregnant women versus the known dangerous risks of COVID.” “There is a lot of data that supports the increased risk of [pregnant people] endure from severe COVID-19 disease, ”adds Dr. Gonsenhauser. They are more likely to be admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) and require mechanical ventilation due to COVID-19. “From a risk-benefit perspective, there are very few risks identified for pregnant women due to the vaccine and many benefits have been identified,” he continues. If a pregnant person decides not to be vaccinated, it is especially important that they do everything they can to stay safe, including social detachment and the use of facial coverage when in public. Vaccines have some known side effects for the general public, including fever, fatigue, headaches and swelling at the injection site – similar to the effects of the flu vaccine. This week, the CDC released an analysis of nearly 2 million doses that showed how unusual the most serious allergic reactions to the vaccine are: There were only 11.1 cases per million doses administered. “At this point, we had dozens, if not hundreds of thousands, of people around the world who received the vaccines that are currently starting to be administered in the United States,” says Dr. Gonsenhauser. “They have repeatedly demonstrated that they are safe and effective.” In the end, it is up to each individual to choose whether to receive the COVID-19 vaccine and, if you are concerned, talk to a reputable doctor about your personal risk. But, as the CDC says, we know that it can protect you from the virus and can help stop the pandemic – and with reports of a very contagious new super-strain COVID-19 arriving in the U.S., there are many reasons to want to stop the spread of a fatal virus as quickly as possible. Like what you’re seeing? How about a little more kindness R29, right here? What to know about the new medical racism “Super Strain” COVID-19, the COVID vaccine and a way forward The COVID-19 vaccine from Moderna has just been approved by the FDA