Let's be honest, no matter how much science you know, or how logical you think you are,
vaccines can be scary.
There's something about someone else injecting us with a foreign substance
that triggers our instinctive animal fight or flight response.
Yet despite this, the COVID vaccines that are currently being developed
are our best hope of containing the coronavirus, and getting our lives back to something
that at least approximates to normal.
Of course, that doesn't necessarily make things any easier if you're grappling with coronavirus worries,
So to help out, we thought we'd take a moment on Risk Bites
to look at five reasons why you might think twice before getting the vaccine,
and why, on balance, you might want to go ahead and get one anyway.
One: What if the vaccine comes with unknown risks?
Unfortunately, everything we do comes with risks. And vaccines are no different.
But the important questions here include: How likely are possible downsides?
How severe are the potential consequences?
And perhaps the biggest one of them all: What are the hidden dangers of not acting?
Of course, if you're going to inject billions of people with a vaccine,
someone, somewhere, is going to have an adverse reaction.
But for the vast majority of people, this is unlikely to be worse than feeling slightly under the weather for a day or so.
Fortunately, even with the speed with which these vaccines have been developed,
we have checks and balances in place to ensure that the likelihood of things going seriously wrong
is incredibly small.
Which means that, at the end of the day, the biggest risk most people face when getting a shot ...
... is a bruised ego as they realize they should have got one sooner!
Two: Maybe the vaccines won't be effective.
Fortunately, the way that vaccines are developed and regulated these days
means that we have a pretty good handle on how effective they are.
And all the evidence on COVID vaccines so far indicates that they are as effective as they need to be
for reducing infections, or reducing the severity of the impact if you do become infected.
And of course, vaccines don't have to be 100% effective if we're to develop herd immunity -- just effective enough.
But this only works if everyone takes their responsibility to be part of the COVID solution seriously.
Three: Surely COVID is fake news manufactured by "Big Pharma."
OK, so let's be honest here. There is nothing fake about COVID.
This is caused by a vicious virus that's killed millions of people, and left many more struggling with long term health issues.
And if you don't believe me, ask anyone who's had to treat the sick and the dying.
This is also not a virus that we can overcome through wishful thinking and blind optimism,
No matter what you think of Big Pharma, we *need* vaccines.
Of course, pharmaceutical companies will make money out of these. They have to ...
... otherwise they wouldn't be in business.
And developing new vaccines is a crazy-expensive business!
But this is a "yes-and" situation where everyone stands to benefit from effective vaccines.
And trust me, getting COVID vaccines right is something that pharma companies know
that they cannot afford to get wrong.
Four: Aren't vaccines just a ploy by Bill Gates to implant microchips in everyone?
OK so it may sound like I'm heading into crazy-land here,
but some people really do believe this.
However, I have to admit that, if asked to chose between Bill Gates being a criminal mastermind
bent on world domination, or COVID being part of an evil plot thought up by
aliens living on the dark side of the moon ... I'd go with the aliens!
Trust me on this, Bill is not out to get you!
And finally, five: Isn't it my right not to be vaccinated?
To be honest, it's not clear whether saying no to vaccines is a basic human right,
especially when your alleged rights end up being someone else's wrongs.
More importantly, whatever you think about your rights, and those of others, they always come with responsibilities.
And the hard truth is that, if you decide not to have the COVID vaccine,
you risk robbing someone else of their right to live a healthy normal life.
The bottom line here is that, no matter how hesitant you are about COVID vaccines --
-- and it's OK to be anxious --
-- the benefits to all of us from getting vaccinated far, far outweigh any of the risks.
And sometimes, we all need to step up to the plate
In putting the health and wellbeing of others ahead of ourselves.
For more information, please do check out the links in the blurb below. And as always, stay safe.