Millions of Americans are now vaccinated against the average Covid-19 every day, and while many Proudly shared The status of their vaccinations on social media, others will describe them Mild but definitely significant side effects such as sore throat or flu-like fatigue. But not everyone’s symptoms after vaccination are necessarily due to that vaccine – some may actually be due to the evil twins of the placebo effect.
Simply to specify the rightThere is nothing wrong with experiencing any side effects after vaccination, for no apparent reason. If anything, this side effect is always a sign that the body’s immune system is kicking in gear, as it is learning to recognize what the coronavirus looks like after getting a blueprint of its appearance from the vaccine (usually its spike protein, which the virus uses). . This immune response is one that takes into account symptoms such as fever, fatigue, and general nausea for a day or two after you have been vaccinated. Usually, but not always.
Let’s take a look at this Clinical trial data For the two-dose mRNA vaccine developed by Pfizer and Bioentech, the first to reach the American people last December. Data based on more than 30,000 volunteers show that it is a safe and effective vaccine, but no side effects are free. 84 84% had injection site reactions such as pain or itching in the week after taking the dose; 63% experienced fatigue; 55% experience headaches.
Looking at these statistics alone, it is clear that most people who are vaccinated experience something. But surprisingly, in this same trial, a large proportion of people who received placebo shots Also experienced Some of these features. After the first placebo shot, about a third experienced fatigue and a third experienced headaches.. As many as 12% of placebo patients also had diarrhea after the first shot, after a higher dose than the vaccine group. As a reminder, people The placebo was given only one shot of saline solution, aka salt and water.
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Now, some of these people who get placebo shots have fatigue, headaches, Or diarrhea that day, even if they haven’t been tried – even if it’s Gizmodo’s subject .Nailed Until recently these were unfortunately many common ailments, caused by a lot of things. But some people have just experienced something they call the “nosebo effect”. Just as our positive expectations make us feel better after a new potential treatment, so too, for a while, our negative expectations can go against it and make us feel stronger. On Twitter, some even have Admitted To It felt bad after taking the placebo after taking the real thing.
There is a tendency to dismiss the placebo / nosebo effect only as a product of the mind. But we experience every sensation Eventually the mind processes, so it doesn’t really say much. Sometimes, this sensation is due to a strict physical cause – a touched hot stove and sometimes it is more complicated. If someone feels stressed about taking a newly developed vaccine, or about getting vaccinated in general, if they hate needles, it can provoke headaches or lead to fatigue.
None of this is at all unusual, it’s just human nature. And although it should go without saying, the root of a person’s grief, nosebo or not, it does not reduce the need to identify the pain and try to remedy it if possible. But the placebo / nosebo effect is one of the many reasons why we need carefully planned research, like controlled clinical trials, to better understand the world around us. It is especially important to try to find out the potential benefits and risks of a new drug or vaccine. Thankfully, in the case of Pfizer / Bioentech vaccine and others like it, they have benefits in protecting us from serious illness and death. Is becoming clear Every day, especially in countries where vaccination is high.
So go ahead and get vaccinated as soon as possible. Just keep in mind that your post-shot may not do the trick Be the highest The obvious reason
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