What is a vaccine?

Hopefully everyone had a great holiday season! Maybe you had plenty of food and a lot of family with which to celebrate. Speaking of family, have you heard of the big germs infecting the news headlines?  RSV, Coronavirus, and the Flu (Influenza) are topics that have been trending for the past few months. Interacting with a large number of people, like your family, puts you at risk of getting sick. The best method to protect yourself is to stay away from everyone including your family.  Yeah, right! When you have a big family that isn’t an option, especially during the holidays. The next proven method is to get a vaccine. But what exactly is a vaccine?

It’s a germ. A vaccine contains weakened germs (viruses or bacteria). The germ is the same kind that you are trying to protect yourself from. So, why do we do this? Well, when it comes to curing yourself of a disease your body’s immune system does most of the work.  Exposing the weakened germ to the immune system early allows it to learn how the germ works so it can kill it. During this process white blood cells generate germ-killing antibodies which remain in your body for a long time. Think of it like practicing for a big game. In this case you are letting your immune system practice against the vaccine’s germs before it’s exposed to the real, tougher germs.  

It takes time for your immune system to get ready. After you get a vaccine, your body needs about two weeks to be fully prepared to fight the disease. For this reason, a vaccine is a preventative way to fight the disease. The vaccine doesn’t cure you if you are already sick. After all is said and done, to avoid getting sick at the next family reunion be sure to get your vaccinations weeks in advance. Or, if you are really not looking forward to getting your cheeks pinched by your great-aunt Gertrude, you can always tell your family that you want to isolate yourself so as to avoid getting them sick this year.

By Mark Smith