The last year has been swamped with difficulties because of the unpredictable COVID-19 situations. The world has come to hold because of the strict restrictions that the healthcare authorities and governments have imposed.
COVID-19 has introduced us to a new way of living where everyone has had to adapt. Virtual presence has become a new norm, and we consider physical contact an abhorrence.
Moreover, (considering the situation) sneezing or coughing in public makes a person a prime suspect that everyone tries to stay away from.
In this digitalized era, a time when screen-crazed children who had no problem spending most of their day glued to screens now crave fresh air and outdoor activities. Furthermore, COVID times have provided an opportunity for families to spend time together.
Consequently, amid the uncertainty when all the industries were shut down, the health and pharmaceutical industry gave their best to deal with the pandemic.
They pitched in all their efforts to develop a solution to get the situation under control: an effective vaccine formula.
Medical News Today gives details on the effectiveness of the vaccine with relation to its side effects.
COVID-19—Symptoms
SARS-CoV-2 is a strain of coronavirus that causes the COVID-19 disease. Moreover, the disease affects the respiratory system of the infected person.
Additionally, this disease has become the cause of death of 4.34 million people worldwide over the past year.
Although the respiratory system is primarily affected by the disease, we can also observe some other symptoms. The symptoms vary for different people.
Moreover, with the variations in the strains of the virus, symptoms have also become more diverse.
However, a few common symptoms include fever, chills, dry cough, nausea, vomiting, chest congestion, loss of smell and taste, fatigue, conjunctivitis, diarrhea, shortness of breath, rashes.
COVID-19—Preventions
Globally, all the governments took measures prescribed by the World Health Organization to control the situation. They advised people to take precautions to avoid catching the highly contagious disease.
A few of the important precautions are:
- Maintain distance and avoid crowded places
- Avoid having physical contact with anyone
- Regularly wash hands with soap or an alcohol-based sanitizer
- Avoid sharing foods and drinks
- Wear a mask when leaving home
- Avoid touching your eyes, mouth, or nose
- Appropriately cover your nose and mouth with the inside of your elbow while coughing or sneezing
- Clean surfaces using an antiseptic
- Avoid any contact with sick people
- Don’t leave home if feeling unwell
COVID-19—Vaccine and Its Side Effects
In the hopes of ending this pandemic, pharmaceutical and scientists gave all their efforts to develop the vaccine.
As a result of their vigor, they presented the world with an efficient and effective vaccine within a year, breaking all records.
The entire process is strenuous and requires a lot of funds from health organizations and governments. Moreover, the World Health Organization has tested each vaccine for its efficacy and effectiveness before approval.
Therefore, everyone needs to know that all the COVID-19 vaccines effectively protect the vaccinated people from contracting severe forms of this disease or dying from any of its variants.
Furthermore, fully vaccinated people can resume many of their activities. However, they should be mindful of wearing masks, as they can still aid in the disease’s transmission in unvaccinated people.
Additionally, all the COVID vaccines are safe, but they may cause a few side effects which diminish with time. A few of these side effects include:
- Feeling fatigued, developing a headache or muscle pain, having a fever and chills, or feeling nauseous.
- The arm where you get the shot may swell, become red, and feel painful.
Dressing in light, comfortable clothes and keeping hydrated helps in relieving these side effects. However, scientists have observed no long-term side effects among the millions of people who have gotten the COVID-19 vaccine.
Effectiveness of COVID-19 Vaccine
All the vaccines that the WHO has authorized have been tested for their quality, efficacy, and safety. The efficacy of a vaccine is its performance in ideal conditions in a controlled clinical trial.
Moreover, the performance of the vaccine in a wider population is its effectiveness. This varies from the efficacy that scientists observed in the clinical trials.
WHO has kept COVID vaccines under strict protections to ensure their safety. These vaccines are continually being tested for any safety concerns.
Furthermore, COVID vaccines are an effective way to build immunity against the disease. However, we should be mindful that it requires some time to be fully effective.
Moreover, one should continue following all the precautions considering the COVID variants with varying transmissibility levels.
Correlation Between Protection and Side Effects
A bone-chilling headline by Medical News Today compelled readers to wonder if the COVID vaccine was truly effective if they didn’t experience any side effects.
Globally, over 13% of the total population has been vaccinated against the COVID-19. However, vaccine monitoring is still in process, as per the Centers for Disease Control and Management (CDC).
Although many people have faced some side effects from the administration of the COVID vaccine, this is not true for everyone. That which is different is dangerous.
Similarly, people questioned the effectiveness of the COVID vaccine in case they experienced no side effects.
However, all misconceptions were cleared by Professor Schaffner, who stated that there is no direct correlation between side effects and immunity. Moreover, neither the absence nor the presence of side effects can ensure immunity from the vaccine.
Nonetheless, there may be other factors that affect the vaccine’s effectiveness and may even prevent the body from building partial or any immunity from the vaccine.
These factors include the intake of immunosuppressants or drugs used in cancer treatment. To ensure that it has built immunity, people can take antibody tests.
Also, everyone needs to remember that vaccines take time to come into effect and build the body’s immunity.
Bottom-line
This entire situation has been an exceptional learning experience as well. We realize the important role that different people play in our lives.
Moreover, vaccines are our sole saviors right now. Therefore, it is best to learn to trust all the health organizations and play our part in busting all the myths surrounding them.
