Test your COVID-19 vaccine knowledge

Sometimes there are microchips on the outside of a syringe, so the health care professional can scan it quickly for digital records. But they are never located inside the needle. In fact, even the world’s tiniest microchip is much too big to insert into an immunization shot. Vaccines are given with a 22 to 25 gauge needle. A 22 gauge needle’s inner diameter is about 0.41 mm – smaller than a 1 mm microchip.

This claim circulated after a hypothetical conversation about the need to test a vaccine for side effects before giving it to the general public. The risk of side effects is why vaccines go through three phases of clinical trials before being approved. A vaccine that caused significant harm to many would not be released to the public.

The DNA in a DNA vaccine refers to the genetic material of the virus, not the genetic material of the person. Vaccines train your body to recognize a foreign invader. Your cells take up the little pieces of the coronavirus’ DNA and make coronavirus proteins. Your body can then effectively mount an attack against them and remember it for the future if you get infected with COVID-19. No vaccine can genetically modify a person’s DNA.
 

New influenza vaccines are produced each year based on the different influenza strains causing infection in six months.

There is no link whatsoever between vaccines and autism. A small study making this false claim in 1998 was retracted – meaning the study is no longer considered an official part of scientific literature. And after this fraudulent study, there have been extensive additional studies that have found no link.

The coronavirus that causes COVID-19 and the virus that causes the flu are two different viruses. That’s why you should definitely get a flu shot this year, to prevent overwhelming hospitals with cases of flu and COVID-19 at once.

A YouTuber claimed that a COVID-19 vaccine created by GlaxoSmithKline will cause infertility. GSK isn’t even making a vaccine. The “infertility chemicals” he references are from an old study about a potential treatment for cancer in 1989 – nothing related to COVID-19 vaccines developed today. The YouTuber claims that there are two versions of the vaccine based on sex: one for males and one for females. None of the COVID-19 vaccines in Phase 3 are sex based.

People who are immunocompromised, babies, and sometimes pregnant women are excluded from some vaccine recommendations. That’s why it’s important for everyone else to do their part and get a vaccine. You can protect vulnerable people with your vaccination.

The Pfizer and Moderna vaccine candidates are mRNA vaccines. This type of vaccine uses messenger RNA to instruct your body to build the coronavirus’ spike protein. Your body then produces antibodies to combat the coronavirus when it encounters it later.

Public health experts say the best strategy is to test, trace and isolate. Wearing a mask helps keep you and others safe. Many countries have reduced and even eliminated their COVID-19 outbreaks by following these guidelines. We can get cases down in eight weeks with this strategy to get kids back in school, fans in stadiums and everyone back to work.