10 of the most googled Covid-19 myths debunked

10 of the most googled Covid-19 myths debunked

Vaccine for the World

Is steam inhalation a cure? Does the vaccine change your DNA? Does hot weather kill the virus? Emma Loffhagen separates fact from fiction

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From alleged plots to insert microchips into people, to 5G rumours and hoax cures, an overwhelming amount of misinformation has circulated about Covid-19 over the past year and a half.

False claims can spread faster than the virus itself, often because they are targeted, simple, and tap into our fears.

Here are ten of the most common vaccine myths debunked:

Myth: The Covid-19 vaccine enters your cells and changes your DNA

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Truth: There are currently two types of Covid-19 vaccines that have been authorized and recommended for use in the UK: messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines and a viral vector vaccine. Both mRNA and viral vector Covid-19 vaccines deliver instructions (genetic material) to our cells to start building protection against the virus that causes Covid-19.

However, the material never enters the nucleus of the cell, which is where our DNA is kept. This means the genetic material in the vaccines cannot affect or interact with our DNA in any way. All Covid-19 vaccines work with the body’s natural defenses to safely develop immunity to disease.

Myth: 5G spreads Covid-19

AFP via Getty Images

Truth: 5G was a favourite target of conspiracy theorists long before Covid-19 appeared. Some claim 5G can suppress the immune system, others that the mobile technology somehow transmits the virus. 5G radio waves are nowhere near strong enough to transmit the virus, and the idea that the technology can transmit the virus is biologically impossible.

Wuhan was one of the first cities to trial 5G in China, which might explain where some of these theories came from. However, Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou also rolled out 5G at a similar time. Covid-19 has significantly impacted countries with very little 5G coverage, such as Iran.

Myth: Researchers rushed the development of the Covid-19 vaccine, so its effectiveness and safety cannot be trusted

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Truth: There are many reasons why the Covid-19 vaccines were able to be developed so quickly. For example, the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines were created with a method that has been in development for years, so the companies could start the vaccine development process early in the pandemic.

Also, rather than vaccine developers skipping testing steps, they actually conducted some of the steps on an overlapping schedule to save time. The projects had plenty of resources, as governments invested in research.

As well as this, some types of Covid-19 vaccines were created using messenger RNA (mRNA), which allows a faster approach than the traditional way that vaccines are made.

Myth: The Covid-19 vaccine causes fertility issues

AFP via Getty Images

Truth: Confusion arose when a false report surfaced on social media, saying that the spike protein on the Covid-19 virus was the same as another spike protein called syncitin-1 that is involved in the growth and attachment of the placenta during pregnancy. The false study said that getting the Covid-19 vaccine would trigger a woman’s body to fight this different spike protein and affect her fertility. In fact, the two spike proteins are completely different and getting the vaccine will not affect the fertility of women who are seeking to become pregnant, including through IVF.

During the Pfizer vaccine tests, 23 women volunteers involved in the study became pregnant, and the only one who suffered a pregnancy loss had not received the actual vaccine, but a placebo.

Getting Covid-19, on the other hand, can potentially have a serious impact on pregnancy and the mother’s health.

Myth: You’re less likely to contract Covid-19 in hot weather

Brighton Beach during a heat wave
Getty Images

Truth: Exposure to the sun or high temperatures does not prevent contraction of Covid-19 or cure the virus. You can catch it whatever the weather, sadly. Taking a hot bath also can’t prevent you from catching the virus.

Myth: Injecting or consuming bleach or disinfectant kills the virus

Donald Trump
AP

Truth: Consuming or injecting disinfectant or bleach does not wipe out viruses in the body, and it can be extremely dangerous.

Disinfectants and bleach are strong oxidizing agents, useful to kill bacteria or viruses when they are deposited on surfaces, but these agents should not be ingested or injected. These agents can cause severe tissue burns and blood vessel damage. Applying alcohol or chlorine to the skin can cause harm, especially if it enters the eyes or mouth. Also, these products cannot kill viruses inside the body.

Myth: The Covid-19 vaccine was developed with or contains controversial substances

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Truth: Foetal tissue, implants, tracking devices and microchips courtesy of Bill Gates. These are just some of the rumours flying around about what substances are hidden in the Covid-19 vaccines. All are, of course, not true. The vaccines contain mRNA and other normal vaccine ingredients, such as fats (which protect the mRNA), salts, and a small amount of sugar.

In particular, rumours that the vaccine contains the lung tissue of an aborted foetus have proliferated. Confusion may have arisen because there is a step in the process of developing a vaccine that uses cells grown in a lab, which are the descendants of embryonic cells that would otherwise have been destroyed. The technique was developed in the 1960s, and no foetuses were aborted for the purposes of this research.

Myth: Steam inhalation can cure Covid-19

Tanzanian herbalist stokes the fire of his steam inhalation booth
AFP via Getty Images

Truth: A social media post about a doctor who allegedly recovered from Covid-19 after inhaling steam has been widely shared. People do inhale steam to help get rid of cold, but there is no evidence that it cures symptoms of Covid-19. High temperature steam-cleaning of surfaces is used to kill viruses in places like hospitals, but any attempt to inhale industrial steam that hot would be incredibly dangerous.

Myth: Covid-19 infection after getting the vaccine means that the vaccine doesn’t work

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Truth: A small percentage of people who are fully vaccinated will still get the virus. These are called “vaccine breakthrough cases.” This means that while people who have been vaccinated are much less likely to get infected and sick, it still happens in some cases. It’s also possible that some fully vaccinated people might have asymptomatic infections.

Most people who catch Covid will have much milder symptoms after being vaccinated than they would have had otherwise, and this is borne out by the low numbers of hospital admissions in the UK, despite high case numbers.

The Delta variant has also slightly increased the chances of people catching Covid after vaccination.

Myth: Covid-19 is just like the flu

Prayers over the grave of a victim of Covid-19, Jakarta, Indonesia
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Truth: The UK’s Office for National Statistics reported in January this year that the previous 12 months had seen the largest increase in excess mortality since the Second World War and before December deaths had yet been counted.

As well as this, Covid-19 appears to be more contagious and spread more quickly than the flu. Severe illness, such as lung injury, may be more frequent with Covid-19 than with flu. Covid-19 can also cause different complications than the flu, such as blood clots and multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children.

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