Have we heard of herd immunity? This expression refers to the fact that an entire community manages to raise its defense system in the vast majority of the population, favoring collective immunity against a certain disease. To achieve this, our participation will be necessary.
“The term “herd immunity” According to the World Health Organization (WHO) (also called “herd immunity”) refers to the indirect protection against an infectious disease which is achieved when a population becomes immune, either as a result of vaccination or having previously had the infection.”
Having immunity means that, even if we become infected, we will not have symptoms or they will be very mild because our body has obtained information about the external entity and has created defenses that prevent or reduce the disease by knowing it, beforehand, within our organism. When we project the immunity that each of us may have towards society, we are not only talking about collective immunity, but also about empathy or how much we care about the well-being of those close to us or society as a large human family.
This immunity is only achieved by protecting people through vaccination, not exposing themselves to the pathogen that causes the disease and maintaining the regulatory biosecurity protocols even when vaccinated. The OMS:
“Vaccines teach our immune system to create proteins, known as “antibodies,” that fight disease just as when we are exposed to a disease, but, and this is crucially important, Vaccines work without making us sick. Vaccinated people are protected against the disease and cannot spread the pathogen to others, which interrupts all transmission chains.”
Achieving this protection as a species is very important and is our main goal as a species, since we will be reducing to a minimum the risk of continuing to be part of the chain of contagion, the fewer links it has, the better. We need to avoid contagion and gain antibodies to stay healthy in the future without being targeted, in particular, by COVID-19. When the percentage of immune people increases, the probability of becoming infected is lower, This leads to a decrease in the severity and death from the disease, or at best, to its disappearance.
We need, according to data from the OMS that between 70% and 80% of the population is vaccinated and their immune system has created antibodies that strengthen their defenses against the current virus. There are two paths to herd immunity:
- With the vaccine: It is the fastest and safest way to get it, because each person is exposed to the information of the virus in a controlled manner to prepare their defense system. Therefore, the decision to Getting vaccinated is not just a personal matterbut it is about the health of an entire community.
- By contagion: a widespread spread of the disease would be needed. Survivors will have herd immunity, however, this is an uncontrolled way, with a higher number of deaths and that takes much more time and The OMS does not agree with this option: “Attempts to achieve herd immunity by exposing people to a virus are scientifically questionable and unethical. Allowing COVID-19 to spread among populations of all ages and health status will lead to unnecessary infections, hardship and deaths.”
One of the reasons why we trust the vaccination method is that When accessing it we take care to our family and our community. We make it possible for other people to be safe and protected. With Seguros SURA we can confront our doubts with updated and truthful information that, with the help of specialists and professionals in the area of health sciences, we will have more elements to make the best decision.