COVID-19 vaccines do not permanently destroy the immune system

Context

A post shared on Facebook on December 12, 2023, includes a screenshot of a headline saying: “U.K. Telegraph Bombshell: ‘Millions Of Vaccinated People Now Have VAIDS’. Millions of people injected with mRNA Covid jabs have gone on to develop vaccine-acquired immune deficiency Syndrome (VAIDS), according to a bombshell new report.”

The caption reads: “Sad part is... I listened to the REAL experts 2 years ago..and knew this was inevitable. The shots permanently destroy your immune system...the more you have, the more susceptible to illness you become. The common cold then has the ability to kill you. AIDS is an immune deficiency.” 

However, while the headline refers to an article in the newspaper The Telegraph, the original article did not include the wordings “bombshell” or "VAIDS," nor did it say that COVID-19 jabs have caused adverse effects in those injected. 

In fact

The image is a screenshot of the headline of an article published by the website Planet Today on December 12. The article claims that Cambridge scientists have found that ”mRNA vaccines contain unusual and dangerous proteins being made instead of the desired Covid ‘spike,’ which mimics infection and leads to antibody production.” 

According to Planet Today, this is a destructive immunity response caused by “altered cytokine responses.” The article also claims that the more jabs a person receives, the more depleted the immune system becomes, resulting in VAIDS. 

In the original article, which is extensively quoted by Planet Today, the Telegraph wrote that 25-30 percent of those injected with mRNA Covid jabs had suffered an unintended immune response created by a glitch in the way the vaccine was read by the body. It also wrote that the error created no adverse effects.  

COVID-19 vaccines work by introducing tiny pieces of mRNA into the patient’s cells, teaching them to make copies of the COVID-19 spike protein that normally allows the virus to enter a host’s cells. This triggers an immune response without using a live virus and allows the patient’s own immune system to recognize and fight the virus if it enters the body in the future. The mRNA in the vaccine is then broken down by the cell. 

Previously, research on mRNA vaccines has often stalled because the body can attack the RNA itself as a foreign invader. The problem was solved by swapping one of the RNA bases, uridine, with a similar synthetic alternative. This made creating proteins in the body possible without the immune system attacking the jab.

While the scientists did say that subsequent mRNA vaccines may, in theory, lead to viable, rogue proteins being created in the body, they also stressed there is no evidence that this has occurred with the COVID-19 jabs and that research has shown beyond doubt that mRNA vaccination is safe and has saved lives worldwide. They also said that future trials on other mRNA therapeutics would detect such problems in the early stages. 

VAIDS is analogous to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a chronic condition interfering with the body’s ability to fight infection and disease caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). 

Scientists interviewed by Reuters and the Associated Press have stated that VAIDS is not a real condition and that COVID-19 vaccines can not cause a syndrome matching this description.  

“Altered cytokine response” refers to an Australian study from August 2023, which observed changes in cytokine production by immune cells when encountering various pathogens one and six months after vaccination. Cytokines are proteins that function as chemical messengers in the immune system, and the study did not conclude that this is harmful. 

The website Planet Today contains multiple conspiracy theories. Its “about us” statement includes, “Updating daily on UFO sightings, ghost encounters, conspiracy as well as all things crazy and bizarre. If you’re looking for weird inventions, freaky characters, mysteries of history, UFO, ghosts, and more unusual, mysterious phenomena, you’ll most likely find (it) here.” 

The verdict 

The headline is from the website Planet Today, which misquotes a scientific study referred to by The Telegraph. The study did not say that those injected with mRNA vaccines developed adverse effects that were harmful to their autoimmune systems. VAIDS is not a real condition. We have therefore rated this claim as false. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a lot of potentially dangerous misinformation. For reliable advice on COVID-19, including symptoms, prevention, and available treatment, please refer to the World Health Organization or your national healthcare authority.