Experts talk about what they want people to know about vaccines
Dr. Sotaro Mine, a virologist and immunologist, said, "What we should be worried about is..."
“The headline read, “Antibody levels drop by a quarter in three months after vaccination. The headline read: “Antibody levels drop by a quarter in three months after vaccination…” This was a news report on a research team from Fujita Medical University. Many people must have felt uneasy after reading this.
“There is nothing to worry about at all. This is because the ‘antibody titer’ (the amount of antibodies in the blood) has dropped, not because the ‘preventive effect’ has dropped by a quarter. The ‘preventive effect’ against new coronavirus infections and COVID-19 infections and severe infections is well maintained. The ‘prophylactic effect’ against new coronavirus infections and COVID-19 infections and severe infections has been maintained.
Dr. Sotaro Mine, a vaccine specialist, has been interviewed by FRIDAY Digital on numerous occasions. Despite the ever-changing situation, Dr. Mine is always calm and collected.
“It is known that the antibodies obtained from vaccination are very high, much higher than those obtained by infected people after they are cured.
It’s not a simple matter that if one element of the ‘antibody titer’ goes down, the effectiveness in preventing infection and disease will go down proportionally. It would be a shame if people were put off vaccinating because of news reports that emphasize some of these studies.
In the United States, where Dr. Mine lives, the vaccination system was established earlier than in Japan.
“In the U.S., where Dr. Mine lives, the vaccination system was established earlier than in Japan, but there are still people who are anti-vaccine, and they send out various messages. Even so, there are still people who are anti-vaccine, and they are sending out various messages. This seems to be the same situation in Japan as well. …People who don’t know anything about science are making a lot of noise, but there are a certain number of people who believe it.
In the U.S., the vaccination rate is nearly 60% in the northeastern states where vaccination is more advanced, while the completion rate is only about 40% in the southern states where anti-vaccination tendencies are strong. The difference in vaccination rates has resulted in a “fivefold” difference in the number of deaths.
“Preventing Vaccine Refusal Deaths
A woman in Texas, U.S.A., refused to be vaccinated, became infected, and died, leaving behind four children. At the end of her life, she said, “I want vaccines for my children. In the U.S., there have been many reports of deaths of such “vaccine-avoiders”.
“The contamination of the Moderna vaccine with a foreign substance is something that should never happen. We need a thorough investigation to find out what happened. However, I don’t think we need to worry too much about the possibility of health problems caused by this contamination. It is only natural that such an accident would cause people to reject the vaccine. Even in the U.S., we are struggling to spread vaccines. I would like people in Japan to stay calm and read the information, and pharmaceutical companies and the government need to respond quickly and transparently.
Books about vaccine conspiracy theories are also selling well.
“However, research data from various countries clearly shows that vaccines are effective, and public organizations in various countries have announced that vaccination is recommended based on the balance of benefits and risks.
What should we believe now? What should we believe now?
Sotaro Mine is a physician (pathologist), pharmacist, and doctor of medicine. Graduated from Kyoto University Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Nagoya University School of Medicine, and the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Medicine. After working at the National Center for Global Health and Medicine Hospital and the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, he was a postdoctoral fellow at the U.S. National Institutes of Health. He specializes in pathology, virology, and immunology, and is also well versed in vaccine information and medical literacy issues. His nickname is “Dr. Babu.
