Boosters

Don't attack me..... BUT!!!!!

This is turning into a Flu Shot at this stage.

Is this really a vaccine or something like a flu shot that you have to get each year?

Surely to God it must be about time for some company to bite the bullet and make a vaccine on a non profit basis and license it's production around the globe. Could you imagine how many lives it could save ?

There is no such thing as a "non profit basis". Everyone with a job makes a profit, every supplier in the chain makes a margin. Cutting those margins will not increase supply, that's economic illiteracy.

The profits are what drives production.

I've spoken to a few people who were delighted to get their jab but are a bit iffy about getting boosters. I read earlier the CEO of Pfizer saying a new variant will eventually turn up that their vaccine won't work against but they'll be able to develop a new jab to combat that within 3 months. How many jabs will we need? I'll be happy to grab a booster but I can also understand people being a bit uncomfortable about multiple jabs of vaccines every year.

I'm one of those. I happily got my 2 doses but the side effects hit me hard. First dose i was like a zombie for a few days, no big deal. Second dose i had chest pains which made me worry. It cleared up after a few days but it does make me a little hesitant to get a booster (even though i probably will)

You're dead right but I think the main difference is we don't vaccinate the whole population every year with the flu jab only certain people. People in their 20,s 30,40s aren't used to yearly jabs and a lot just won't bother which might end up being a problem. If this ends up being a yearly thing vax rates will fall off a cliff at some stage as some people will just get fed up of heading to the GP annually.

Yes, Spanish flu just evolved into the flus we have now as far as I know.

Covid will also fook off. It'll still be around but eventually similar to measles and the like. Everyone will get vaccinated like now, and eventually it should become weakened with infections both in the vaccinated and unvaccinated. I would assume that once we have some sort of grip, a long term vaccine will be developed, something that can give us longer efficacy along with a virus that's less potent.

For the moment though I think a lot of people will still keep up the boosters for as long as Covid is killing. I never took the flu vaccine until last winter, nor did the family. Social distancing and masks helped, but it was the first Christmas there wasn't snots or sore throats in the house! So I'll be keeping that vaccine up, and maybe mask wearing during packed Christmas shop time!

Warned? Has there been research that boosters are over stimulating immune systems already?

A vaccine that needs a booster after around 6 months is not a vaccine.

I don't think COVID boosters will be needed that often (i.e. 6 months) for most people, but have you got vaccines for travelling internationally before? Boosters are very common there and each vaccine has a period of protection and booster follow-up schedule.

Before this pandemic, if you were to do a poll on how long a vaccine should last I can bet you that not many people would say 6 months. Regardless of the definition of a vaccine, the perception is that it should be reasonably long lasting.

Same here and I've always been staunchly pro-vaccination. The first dose did nothing to me except for a sore arm. The second seemed fine at first, just a sore arm and a bit of tiredness, but I got chest pains about a week later. It cleared up after another week or so but it was scary. I think I'll be speaking to my GP before taking any boosters.

Boosters will be a pain in the arse... but if the alternative is going back into lockdowns, hospitals full, schools closed, pubs closed... I'll take as many injections as I need to, to be honest.

Like the originals … they give you the shot in the arm!

Wait, then who were those people who asked me to drop my pants?

It is either use a vaccine that was developed very quickly, or wait until a longer lasting one was developed. But we also needed to take what is available to stop variants appearing.

I know I'll be happy to take a booster at certain times rather than go through the restrictions again.

The flu vaccine is redeveloped every year. I have yet to see someone develop a third eye from getting the flu vaccine every year.

Point of order here - "let everyone get infected eventually" was absolutely never the way out of this.

You had better hope that it's not, because the death toll will be massive and guess what, natural immunity doesn't last forever either.