Why people who had Covid still need a booster
Even if you had Covid, your immunity wanes over time. Also, the data suggests you get MORE immunity from the vaccines. Here are the facts.
I did a quick video for TikTok, in which I explained why the science says people who have already had Covid — aka who have “natural immunity” — still need to get a booster.
I’m going to publish my notes below, as they’re pretty readable as is, but you can also go watch the video directly here.
I also did a 7-part video series on why Covid booster shots are needed at all. You can watch that here.
Do people who recover from Covid need the vaccine?
The CDC says yes. Why? A few reasons.
1. The data suggests that you have a stronger immune response from the vaccine than from actually getting Covid.
An April 20 paper cited by Dr. Fauci found that people who had received two doses of the Pfizer of the Moderna vaccine had antibody levels "up to 10 times" higher than people who had antibodies from a natural infection.
Another study found that people who recovered from Covid, but were not subsequently vaccinated, had immunity levels lower than people who had received both shots of Pfizer or Moderna. But, once the natural immunity folks got ONE mRNA dose (aka Pfizer or Moderna), they had equal levels of immunity to people who got two doses of the mRNA shot but never had Covid.
In other words, the study showed that people who catch Covid still need one booster shot in order to have the equivalent immunity to someone who never had Covid, but received two doses of the mRNA vaccine.
2. Why does that matter?
Because you’re less likely to catch Covid, or have symptomatic or serious illness, if you have more antibodies. A recent study showed that people who recovered from Covid, but didn’t subsequently get vaccinated, were 2x more likely to get Covid again as people who were vaccinated.
3. The vaccine appears to give your immune system a better ability to fight new variants than you’d get from simply having had Covid.
4. Immunity from Covid – natural or vaccine – appears to wane over time.
This is, in part, because you have fewer antibodies over time.
It’s already harder for your body to fight off symptomatic illness if you have fewer antibodies, but the research shows you need a higher level of antibodies to fight Delta than what you need to fight the previous variants. So decreasing immunity over time makes it harder for your body to fight Delta for both reasons.
5. Pfizer antibodies wane over time.
We know that the Pfizer vaccine is less effective at stopping symptomatic illness for everyone after/by around 6 to 8 months, and it’s less effective at stopping serious illness in the elderly at the juncture.
That’s why boosters are now being recommended in the US; and Israel had already started boosters for their older citizens.
6. “Natural immunity” antibodies also wane over time.
Immunity from natural infection starts to decline after 6 to 8 months. Just like immunity from vaccines. So, if you had Covid ten months ago, are you still well protected? It’s not clear you are.
7. The naysayers aren’t wrong in claiming that natural immunity USUALLY gives you stronger protection than you get from vaccines. But…
But that’s not ALWAYS the case. With the HPV, tetanus or pneumococcal vaccines, the vaccines give you stronger immunity than the illness does. There is concern that Covid could be one of those exceptions.
All of that is why the CDC is still recommending that people who have had Covid still get vaccinated.
I hope you found that helpful. More later.
JOHN