Fake news travels faster and more effectively than real news! That’s a fact that was proven by a 2018 study of Twitter. 126,000 false rumours were studied over a period of 11 years.
The researchers found that:
- False news stories were 70% more likely to be re-tweeted than true stories
- It took true stories around six times longer than fake stories to reach 1,500 people
- True stories were rarely shared beyond 1,000 people, but the most popular false news could reach up to 100,000.
Why is this case?
The answer comes down to basic human psychology: our minds like novelty and emotion and fake news usually has this quality. It grabs our attention and elicits an emotional response. As a result, fake news can be an excellent marketing tool for those with dubious intentions.
Fake news about the COVID-19 vaccines and fertility
Following on the heels of fake news about the pandemic itself came a new avalanche of misinformation about the vaccines that offer a solution to our COVID-19 misery.
Phase one of this disinformation campaign focused on severe, life-threatening vaccine side effects, always ignoring the rarity of these incidents. This played on fear that the vaccines were untested. This initial noise died down in the face of successful publicity campaigns. The public were given to understand that vaccination was the key to opening up the economy and normal life. Then a more subtle campaign was launched by the Pied Piper of vaccine misinformation.
This second phase homed in on specific fears of certain populations, in this case fertility. Simply, it was claimed that the new vaccines could make you infertile. As if couples and individuals suffering from infertility didn’t have enough to worry about with the fear of COVID-19 and the reduced access to fertility services!
So, as we’ve done before, let’s jump right in: No, the COVID-19 vaccines do not cause infertility. That is a myth.
Three of the leading US professional organisations focused on fertility; the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM), the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the Society for Maternal Fetal Medicine (SMFM); all recommend that pregnant people get vaccinated, as well as those considering pregnancy.
Using words like spike proteins to add credibility to nonsense
Yet, the anti-vaxxers tinfoil-hat claims persist in social media and are slightly more sophisticated than they used to be, coming with a generous pinch of pseudo-science. You might have come across social media stories claiming that the mRNA (Pfizer) vaccine-initiated spike proteins causes issues with gestation. But….they don’t. Period.
Spike proteins do indeed exist on the surface of the COVID-19 virus and the mRNA vaccine works by giving instructions for our cells to make a harmless piece of those proteins. When our immune system recognises the harmless pieces of the viral spike protein, it launches a response that protects us from COVID. Afterward, the spike proteins are naturally destroyed by the body.
There are also false claims that people who have received the vaccine can shed spike proteins. These fictitious proteins are then supposed to cause a variety of reproductive problems in women, which leads to the moronic advice that women should not associate with vaccinated people!
One Harvard University expert, Dr Daniel Kuritzkes said, “The mRNA vaccines contain only instructions for making spike protein and are incapable of generating virus particles, so nothing can be shed.”
Don’t follow the Pied Piper of vaccine misinformation
Make no mistake. COVID-19 is deadly, as is witnessed by a still rising global death toll, which currently stands at 3.36 million. And pregnant women are at greater risk. As the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said, “Pregnant and recently pregnant people are at an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19 when compared with nonpregnant people. Severe illness requires hospitalization, intensive care, or a ventilator or special equipment to breathe, or illness that results in death.”
The CDC also states that pregnant people with COVID-19 could have a higher risk of preterm birth.
While asking questions about the vaccines is natural, especially if you are worried about fertility make sure that the information you are getting is from verified sources like the professional organisations CDC, WHO, ASRM, NHS etc. and not just from social media posts.
Also, if your concerns persist, don’t hesitate to ask for advice from your own healthcare professionals. They are a much better source of information than the Pied Piper of vaccine misinformation and have the experience and qualifications to prove it.
