The distribution of the coronavirus vaccine is progressing well and realistically, with jabs set to accelerate in the coming weeks as several major vaccine centers open their doors.
According to new regional data released today by the NHS, the Midlands, North East and Yorkshire and the South East have seen the highest numbers of vaccines to date. More than 447,000 doses (including the first and second injections) were given in the center of the country, with the smallest number (236,000) given in the east of England.
But can you drink before the vaccine, how fast are you immune and are there any side effects? We’ve broken it down below …
Can I drink alcohol after the vaccination?
Alcohol is unlikely to make any difference to your health after you have been vaccinated, say experts, but out of enough caution some charities recommend leaving it for two weeks. before you get a drink.
Professor Fiona Sim, from the University of Bedfordshire and chair of the independent medical advisory panel for the alcohol charity Drinkaware, says: “We advise that you do not drink alcohol for at least two days in advance. , and at least two weeks later “I received the vaccine, to try to make sure that your immune system is at its best to respond to the vaccine and protect you.”
But she says the vaccine is the most important thing – and that applies to heavy drinkers as well as teetotalers.
How long does it take to develop immunity?
Public Health England says it will take “a few weeks” to develop immunity following the Covid vaccine – advice shared with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), America’s influential equivalent.
If you look at the test data for the three Covid-19 vaccines currently approved for use in the UK, “you can see that there is a clear difference after three weeks,” said Trudie Lang, study professor global health at Oxford University.
What immunity / protection will I have after the first dose?
The topic of vaccine doses has been at the heart of much debate. In December, former Prime Minister Tony Blair urged the government to give an initial dose of Covid vaccine to so many people – rather than comparing stocks until there is enough for a second injection. Although both the Pfizer-Biontech and Oxford-Astrazeneca University vaccines require two doses, Blair said this could help get the country out of lockout more quickly and said the first dose is giving you “great protection.”
“Partial immunity occurs after the first dose and we see some protection occur on day 12 after the first dose, but the best protection is seven days after the second dose,” says the doctor. Professor Sir Munir Pirmohamed, member of the Commission on Human Medicine (CHM).
Once the second dose is administered – which comes 21 days after the first – people can expect a full vaccination seven days later. This means that immunity can be expected 28 days after the first dose.
However, Dr Pankhania says there is a chance that you can catch the virus after you have been vaccinated. This means that if you are clinically vulnerable or immune, it is important that you continue to exercise caution. “None of the vaccines offer 100 percent protection, so there’s a small chance you won’t get the vaccine – even after you get one,” he says. “The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is 95 per cent effective, meaning that around 5 per cent of people will not be protected. This is more likely if you are older, or have already been vaccinated. Others may still be ill, but they are not as bad as they would be without the vaccine. “
Can I go out, go to work, or catch my grandmothers after I get it?
No. The vaccines have been shown to protect against serious illness, but they have not been shown to protect against transmission, says Dr Lang. So you should keep following social distance guidelines after getting the vaccine.
That guidance is unlikely to be lifted once a sufficiently large proportion of the UK’s elderly and vulnerable people have been vaccinated.
Do I need the vaccine if I have already had Covid?
There is. Relapse from Covid-19 is rare, and a recent study of healthcare workers by Public Health England found that immunity in most cases lasts at least five months (and possibly longer). longer – five months just as long as the study lasted).
But it is impossible to know whether you are immune or not just by getting the virus, so experts still recommend getting vaccinated.
“It is possible to re-infect with COVID-19, [and a] you should be offered the vaccine even if you already had COVID-19 infection, ”says the CDC
Does the vaccine stop me from giving Covid to other people?
The short answer is, we don’t know for sure. While it is true that the vaccines prevent life-threatening illnesses, none of the three approved vaccines – Moderna, AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech – have been proven to be able to prevent virus completely. It’s the same for distribution, too.
“If you get the vaccine, there is still the potential to develop an infectious disease and as a result to be infectious to others,” said Dr Bharat Pankhania, senior consultant in infectious disease control at the University of Exeter.
Clinical trials of the covid vaccines show that they significantly reduce the risk of becoming ill with the virus, but some may still be infected and able to spread the disease. “There may be a chance that it will stop you from becoming infected as well, but at the moment we cannot be 100 per cent sure,” says Dr Pankhania.
This uncertainty may be due to the speed at which the vaccine has been developed. Typically, a test would monitor vaccine recipients for a longer period of time, showing not only whether they became ill, but whether they were still spreading a virus, before vaccination was widely introduced. While the coronavirus vaccines appear to provide at least a reduction in transmission, it is too early to know for sure, or in part.
“The pudding test is in the test. When we test these in real life, with real people, we know better, ”says Dr Pankhania.
In practice, this means that when the coronavirus vaccine is introduced, the distribution of social vaccines, mask wear and hand washing will be a high priority.
Do I need to continue getting Covid tests after the vaccine?
Yes, if you have symptoms – even after receiving both doses of the vaccine – you will need to be tested. This comes back to the notion that you may still be able to get the virus out after you have been vaccinated.
“Medical professionals are very interested in testing people who have been vaccinated but have been infected, as it helps us in our research to find out if the vaccine works or no, ”says Dr Pankhania. He also said that the vaccine will not affect the result of your test, as the dose is too small to be considered an infection.
Are there any side effects?
There are many rumors circulating about the side effects of the coronavirus vaccine – most of which are false. As a starting point, the NHS website lists a range of side effects to be aware of. They are usually mild and will quickly disappear on their own. These include:
The NHS website says it is okay to take painkillers if you experience any of the side effects.
Out of all the European countries, Norway offers the most cautious approach to the distribution of the vaccine. Norwegian officials said 23 people had died in the country shortly after receiving the first dose of the vaccine. Of those deaths, 13 were self-inflicted, and the findings suggest that common side effects may have contributed to adverse reactions in frail elderly people, according to the Norwegian Pharmaceutical Agency.
A severe allergic reaction to the covid vaccine is very rare in the UK. Last year trials of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine were suspended after a partner suffered a side effect. However, clinical trials of trials are not uncommon, and the vaccine was approved by the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) last year.
Medical experts in the UK still agree that it is much safer to get vaccinated than not.
Will the vaccine give me Covid symptoms?
No. The vaccine may have some minor side effects (see above), as might a flu jab or any other vaccine. But it won’t give you Covid-19, or its symptoms.
“Mild reactions have been reported in some people, which may be things like fever, or feeling a little sick,” says Dr. Lang. “But that doesn’t mean you have Covid.” And that’s the same as a standard flu vaccine. The vaccine is not live. “
Do I still have to wear a mask?
There is. In fact, experts believe that we will be wearing long masks into 2021 and beyond. This is because it will take several months to make sure those in urgent need of protection – health care workers, the elderly, people with very poor health – get the vaccine. Several studies have linked numbers to high levels of mask wear with lower disease rates.
A recent study published in Health Matters compared the rate of coronavirus infection before and after masking mandatory masks in 15 states and the District of Columbia. He found that wearing a forced mask led to a slow growth in the daily growth rate of covid-19, which became more pronounced over time. The first five days after the mask mandate was issued, the daily growth rate went down 0.9 percentage points compared to the five days before the mandate; at three weeks, the daily growth rate had gone down 2 percentage points.
“It’s going to take a long time to be confident that the population of the country has been vaccinated, and that viral activity has dropped dramatically to say that we no longer need to wear masks,” said Dr. Pankhania.
He says the main job of the vaccine is to stop vulnerable people dying; the second is to try to control the number of people who have the disease. The third one – the virus – will only come once we have achieved the first two goals. As Dr. Pankhania observes, there is a chance that we will not actually eradicate the virus, adding that we are “several years away from that time.”