The terms “safe” and “effective” come to the top of the list. While there have been many vaccines developed over decades and used globally, there have been relatively few risks and major benefits. On the whole, our experience with vaccines has been that they are relatively safe and relatively effective. Relative means a tolerable number of adverse events relative to a control group over a long period of time.
Due to the attention given to SARS CoV-2 inoculations, namely Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca and J&J in Canada, we should use them as a comparator. The first thing to note is that there have been more serious adverse events reported to VAERS for three of these vaccines (AstraZeneca product is not approved in the US) in 10 months than the total of all vaccines given over 30 years! To make sure that we compare the same adverse event for all vaccines, we will use ‘deaths’ as a common characteristic of major impact. WARNING – KNOWING THIS DATA COULD BE DISTURBING.
https://openvaers.com/covid-data
In late November, 2021 there were over 8,000 deaths reported to VAERS due to SARS CoV-2 inoculations. By April, 2022, the death number from vaccine adverse events had exploded to 27,350! The vast majority occurred within the first 2-3 days after getting the jab which makes it more predictable that the inoculation is related to the cause of death! To put this into perspective, the US lost about 3,000 soldiers over 20 years in Afghanistan! Basically, they cannot be considered safe.
Are they effective? If they were effective, we would not need booster shots. Nor would we harbour viruses to the point of infecting other people and creating new variants. It would be fair to say that these inoculations have not been as effective as the manufacturers, government and public health had originally hoped for.
An ideal vaccine would be able to prevent infection by a virus. This is known as a ‘sterilizing’ vaccine rather than a ‘leaky’ one. It would also prevent transmission so that the virus could not be spread. By acting as a sterilizing vaccine, it would minimize the chances of the virus developing mutations. Traditional vaccines for other diseases fulfill these characteristics.
Safety could be enhanced by producing the antigen (spike protein) so that it is already in the vaccine at a defined concentration. Presently, all four inoculations instruct the body to become a manufacturing plant for the spike protein antigen. The supply of the resultant immunogen is not defined in time nor amount.
All vaccines to date have tried to mimic an infection to the immune system. This is done by provoking it into developing antibodies and a memory of previous infections to better arm it against future attacks. However, continually provoking the system may lead to some undesirable consequences such as stimulating autoimmune diseases which are recognized as Antibody Dependent Enhancement. A truly ideal vaccine would be able to target the precise regions in the spike and elicit antibodies and memory without inducing undesirable pathological reactions.
Can an ideal vaccine be created for SARS CoV-2? Around 200 are in various stages are in various development. Several of these promising vaccines are in late stage clinical trials and may soon be available to protect against SARS-CoV-2 infections.