You’ve never heard of the Covid booster with the fewest side effects
You’ve never heard of the Covid booster with the fewest side effects
Novavax is just as effective, but far less likely to cause fevers and fatigue.
Summary
The Novavax Covid vaccine offers an effective alternative to mRNA vaccines, with fewer side effects.
Unlike the Pfizer and Moderna shots, which commonly cause fatigue, fever, and headaches, Novavax is based on older vaccine technology and results in milder, shorter-lasting reactions.
mRNA vaccines dominated early due to rapid development, but Novavax offers comparable Covid prevention effectiveness, with studies suggesting longer-lasting antibody responses.
Despite these advantages, Novavax remains underutilized, largely due to timing and misconceptions about its efficacy. Experts encourage considering it as an equal option.
What the fuck do you mean never heard of? What trash is this. Were they not in the same pandemic I was?
And all those dumbfucks who refuse to take mRNA vaccines and claim that's the problem should have no problem with this, right? Right?
Yup. My husband and I were in the Novavax trial here in Australia, and the doctor at the trial said she was surprised more people weren't interested, since its not an mRNA vaccine...
Thanks to the anti Vax idiots, a lot of these dumb-asses aren't even getting flu shots anymore. I've had to send off tons of people to the hospital for complications from the flu over the past few weeks. Lotta old people have shit and vomited themselves into dehydration, crashing their blood pressure and making them pass out or fall and hurt themselves.
Uh, we had couple young children die of Diphtheria in Latvia this year, and everyone online was blaming the doctors for not saving them instead of blaming the parents for refusing vaccination
Yes, the same conservatives who always complain about government red tape keeping anything from getting done and who also were offended by the government cutting through red tape and getting something done quickly when it was important.
Did you read the COVID report released by the oversight committee earlier this month? Part of the overview basically says: "Trump saved us at Warp Speed™ with his vaccines!!", about a paragraph apart from "Biden bad for rushing vaccines".
The mRNA "skepticism" has always been bullshit, lol. The J&J vax wasn't mRNA. I was a tiny bit hesitant about the mRNA thing when the vaccines first became available (and I liked the idea of not having to get a follow up vaccine) so I initially went with the J&J vax.
I got a Pfizer booster yesterday along with my flu shot. So much for the one and done.
Part of the issue is that the FDA got hyper-focused on the mRNA vaccines, and NovaVax takes longer to produce so their paperwork takes longer to put in. For the first few years, the FDA gave their yearly approval for NovaVax several weeks after the mRNA vaccines, often in very late October, so NovaVax kept missing out on all the early-fall newsbeat of "get your vaccine! get your vaccine!" It didn't help that a lot of US pharmacy chains didn't stock it; iirc, the only major chain to stock it last year was Costco; it's profile this year was helped by the fact that CVS decided to stock it.
NovaVax is slightly less effective than Pfizer (which itself is slightly less effective than Moderna [tbf, I think there's only like a 5-point spread between the three]), but a couple studies came out last year showing that NovaVax's main effectiveness may last slightly longer than the mRNA vaccines' roughly 4-month effectiveness (though the difference may be only a matter of weeks).
For people who are vulnerable to poor outcomes, but who don't qualify to be in the "yes, get vaccinated every couple months if you want" category (mostly people who's immune system doesn't produce a lasting response), NovaVax is an option to consider, though you'll have to weigh the risk and reward. As someone who falls into that category, I've been getting NovaVax when it's available early enough and when I expect a milder covid season; if I expect it to be a bad covid season, I'll get the mRNA vaccines.
For me the timing works out as: the primary effectiveness is the first four months, so I try to time my shots to maximally cover the winter heating period and the summer cooling period, when HVAC systems are most in use and help spread the virus. If I get my fall shot in mid-October, I'll be maximally covered through the end of February (includes the winter holidays through Valentine's Day); and if I get my spring shot in early May, I'll have max coverage from Memorial Day to mid/late September. [September is a time to be wary, as your protection will have faded somewhat, a lot of places may still be using A/C, and schoolkids will be spreading various diseases, including covid.]
- signed, someone who is generally healthy but who almost certainly has a genetic predisposition to dying from covid (as in, every other close family member was vaccinated and still died during the pandemic), who has been closely tracking the virus and the vaccines, and who has had 2 Pfizer, 4 Moderna and 3 NovaVax.
PS: for those who've made it this far, I'll leave you three of my favorite virus tracking sites. The CDC's variant tracking page shows which variants are making up what percentage of covid cases, and has a lineage tree. By knowing which lineage your vaccine protects against, and which variants are most prevalent, you can make a better-informed decision on your risk level.
Next, the CDC's covid tracker page shows data for the past week, on both a national and a state level: what percentage of tests were reported positive (less useful now that su many places don't bother reporting), what percentage of ER visits were for covid, and what percentage of deaths were from covid. This is very useful because you can see a surge coming (infections lead to hospitals lead to deaths), and because it's on a national and state level so you can gauge your local risk and regional trends.
Finally, the Wastewater Surveillance project which collates data from participating wastewater processing sites. [important note: most facilities don't do testing, and those that do don't test for all possibilities. So just because your closest plant doesn't show results for, say, RSV, doesn't necessarily mean that RSV isn't circulating in your area.] However, you can see national and regional trends, and search a specific area for participating sites, for data on the 10 diseases they're tracking. And on the charts page, if you select a state, you can see local trends for those diseases.
I've never had side effects from any vaccine except a little bit of soreness for a day and not dying from preventable diseases. I wonder how many antivaxxers are really just afraid of shots and refuse to admit it.
I had the mRNA vaccine and every booster. Every time the next day I had a fever of like 102 to 103, and massive soreness and fatigue. I always dreaded but always got the shot (on Fridays to avoid screwing over work). Figured it was worth the trouble for limiting it to a single day with no respiratory involvement.
My dad also had a similar reaction. No one else I knew had even a mild inconvenience. Some of us just have very very aggressive immune systems with the mRNA I suppose.
Because of this, the last time I got a shot I went with this novavax thing. The pharmacy didn't even offer it as a choice online but had some text telling you to verbally request it if you want it.
So I went with it and had a more normal vaccine reaction, no big deal.
I think I read the efficacy was maybe a little lower, but still pretty effective.
My dad had stopped getting the vaccine because it was so bad, so this is good news for the few of us that have bad reactions, and we do exist.
Damn, that sucks but it still sounds less bad than actually getting sick. Hopefully this new booster makes it better for you guys.
I had to take a day off for my boosters. The second one has me curled up into a ball shivering for 6 hours. Still better than permanent lung and memory damage
The most recent one I got absolutely floored me, but I got it at the same time as the regular winter flu shot and I also have to take a whole bunch of immunosuppressants so it was basically the worst possible scenario. Still, well worth it to not get covid. I'll take a couple of days of feeling sorry for myself over a hospital stay and potential death any day
110% the combo fluvid shot put me on the ground for a minute.
My dumb ass is excited to get it again because it’s still SO MUCH better being a little sore for a couple days rather than being sick as death for 2 weeks
I got the fluvid shots yesterday because I needed to quit putting them off. I'm usually in for a rough couple of days even with just the flu shot, but apart from my arm being really sore I'm pretty much fine today.
I got an 8 day migraine after the second COVID shot. Nothing with the first and never anything from the flu shot. Nothing from COVID booster after that but this year I got the flu & COVID booster together, never doing that again, 4 day migraine.
I got a COVID and flu shot the same day a few years ago and felt super sick for about 48 hours. Like I actually had the flu. I staggered them for a while, but I decided to do it again this year and it wasn't an issue. 🤷♂️
one of the 4 times I've been vaccinated I got mildly sick for a day but you have to be kind of pussy to let that stop you
Still beats getting covid too
Looks decent enough. According to Wikipedia it has an efficacy of just over 90% after second shot.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novavax_COVID-19_vaccineI would have guessed mRNA would be more efficient, it's such a damned brilliant principle.
If it's a traditional vaccine, I wonder if they'll see the same issues with blood clots as the J&J vaccine.
It's traditional in the sense that it uses viral particles, but it's not the same kind as J&J. That one uses the host's own cells to produce the bad mRNA that triggers the immune response. Novavax uses fragments of the COVID virus itself.
I don't get very severe symptoms from the COVID vaccines anymore. The first few back during the pandemic made me feel pretty bad for a day, but I've been getting them every year since and each time it gets easier and easier. This fall I didn't even really need any ibuprofen.
This is nice for those who do still get hit hard though.
Yup, it hasn't gotten any better for me since the first one, it's still like having a short flu. Next time I might get this one specifically.
My dad gets this due to an allergy to a preservative/carrier agent in thr mRNA vaccines. It is hard to find.
I remember when Vox did actual journalism instead of this trash.
I thought it was a pretty well written advertisement
just dropping that there were two types initially. the mrna and dna varieties. when I first read your thing I was thinking. hey the non mrna had the blood clot thing. this is the old way of doing it which takes much longer. did not even know they bothered but hey if some folks will get it who otherwise would refuse because they think its safer then Im all for it. Ill still do the mrna because I doubt the old method can keep up strain wise.
Oh, brilliant! If you're mentally okay, why not turn that 'okay' into 'super okay' with another dose of the COVID vaccine? its like "i'm feeling pretty good, might as well top up my mental health with another dose of the vax!" Hahah may as well dye my hair
If you’re mentally okay
You don't sound it. Are your thoughts racing? Your comment is all over the place.
Getting a needle in your arm that is so tiny that you barely notice the shot is enough to give you a psychotic break?
Also, why is dying hair a bad thing? Do you think anyone over 55 with hair that isn't white or grey doesn't dye it?
Let me guess, you've also turned down the measles vaccine. And polio. And viral hepatitis.
RFK is that you?
Same reason I don't put on my seat belt until the moment of impact. Total waste otherwise!
Who the fuck claimed vaccines improve mental health?
If it did, it sounds like you could use a few.