Culture

Covid Vaccine Doesn't Offer Any More Protective Immunity Than Contracting The Virus Itself, According To New Study

We were told for a long time that the coronavirus vaccine was our best shot at providing protection from contracting the virus. However, a new study suggests that you get just as much, if not more, protection by catching the Covid infection.

By Gina Florio2 min read
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We spent the better part of the last 3 years being on lockdown, seeing small businesses closed down, and being forced to wear a mask everywhere we go. It's only really in the last year that things have gotten back to "normal." When the coronavirus vaccine was first released, we were told by politicians, experts, and even celebrities that getting the shot was the best way to protect ourselves from Covid, or worse, death by Covid. We were even told that getting the vaccine was also the best way to protect others from contracting the virus. As the months go on and more and more information is revealed, we're realizing that we were right all along—and that nearly everything we were told was a lie.

Covid Vaccine Doesn't Offer Anymore Protective Immunity Than Contracting the Virus Itself, According to New Study

On Thursday, a journal called The Lancet released an article called "Past SARS-CoV-2 infection protection against re-infection: a systematic review and meta-analysis." The review covered 65 studies from 19 different countries from the time Covid was detected to September 31, 2022 to determine the level of risk of contracting Covid amongst people who have had coronavirus in the past and those who have never had a previous infection. People who have gotten the vaccine and also contracted coronavirus were not included in the research.

The authors found "that the level of protection afforded by previous infection is at least as high, if not higher than that provided by two-dose vaccination using high-quality mRNA vaccines (Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech)." They also wrote that the finding has "important implications" for policies that restrict access to travel, event spaces, offices, etc. "It supports the idea that those with a documented infection should be treated similarly to those who have been fully vaccinated with high-quality vaccines," the paper read. This comes a little too late, considering how many people lost their job, were denied entry into certain public spaces, or were socially shunned for refusing the vaccine and relying on their natural immunity.

People who contracted Covid were 88% less likely to be hospitalized or die from the virus for at least 10 months after they got sick, according to the study. However, having coronavirus before the omicron variant was detected didn't provide much protection from being infected again with the new mutated version of Covid.

Of course there are still experts who insist that getting the vaccine is still the best choice because you don't run the "risk" of having serious symptoms from the virus or being hospitalized from it. But this research certainly suggests something that many people have been saying all along: for most individuals who are young and healthy, the vaccine doesn't provide much value at all, especially if you have already gotten Covid and developed natural immunity.