Despite availability of vaccines, more than 2000 people die every day in the US alone due to COVID-19 and approximately 133,000 new cases are reported daily.1 Currently, more than 182 million Americans, or 54%, are considered fully vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2, and approximately 64% of the population has received at least one vaccine dose. However, reports indicate that vaccine efficacy reduces with time and booster doses are now recommended despite a lack of unity from the FDA and CDC experts in accepting this step. Moreover, new variants of the coronavirus further complicate the picture, and “breakthrough infections” in the fully vaccinated are on the rise. This situation calls for the revision of current approaches and incorporation of innovative health strategies that are effective, economic, and accepted by the majority of people worldwide.
Despite the current controversy, vaccination has a proven record to be an effective and economic way to prevent many communicable diseases and their complications. In our last Health Science News Page we explained the important side benefit of vaccination that is population immunity important for protecting infants, the elderly and immunocompromised people in society who are not fit to get individual vaccinations for their health reasons. At the same time, it is also important to be aware of health risks associated with some of the ingredients and adjuvants present in vaccines such as aluminum, thimerosal, formaldehyde, MSG, and so on. Since the vaccination process mimics a real infection, and micronutrients are known to protect against various infections and modulate our immune system, this Health Science News Page focus is on the micronutrients required for the protection of health, improved immunity and increased vaccine safety.
Vaccination has been surrounded by controversy for a long time. Some people are afraid of getting vaccinated for multiple reasons. Most often the reason is not having enough knowledge about how vaccines work and what ingredients they contain. Historically, people had a misleading perception about being injected with the same pathogen that causes the disease. However, recent focus of the vaccine controversy has shifted to the presence of additives in vaccines that can cause harmful health effects.