ARE COVID-19 VACCINE INGREDIENTS SAFE?
COVID-19 vaccines give us our best shot at beating the virus. Concerned about what’s in them? These facts may give you peace of mind.
No live coronavirus in the vaccine
None of the current vaccines use the real coronavirus to build immunity. Instead, they deliver instructions to your cells to make a harmless piece of the virus called the spike protein. This teaches the immune system to fight the real virus. But there’s no way the vaccines can give you COVID-19.
Pfizer-BioNTech’s and Moderna’s vaccines use messenger RNA (mRNA) to deliver those instructions. Janssen’s vaccine uses another harmless virus to deliver the coronavirus’s DNA into your body. And it can’t change your own DNA in any way.
Also not included
The vaccines also do not have:
- Preservatives, such as thimerosal (which contains an organic form of mercury)
- Formaldehyde, used to help make some vaccines
- Eggs, latex or antibiotics. Some people are allergic to these things.
- Microchips. No one is putting microchips in the vaccines to track us. That’s a myth. In fact, it’s not even possible to do so.
Talk to your doctor
Like all vaccine ingredients, those in the COVID-19 vaccine serve a specific purpose. Some help the vaccine work. Others are needed to help make the vaccine. Ask your doctor if you have any concerns about what’s in the vaccines.
You can help make your shot even safer by telling your doctor if you:
- Have any allergies or other health problems
- Have ever had an allergic reaction to a vaccine
This newsletter is published as a community service for the friends and members of Aetna Better Health of Kansas. This newsletter contains general health information that should not replace the advice or care you get from your provider. Always ask your provider about your own health care needs.