Can women take COVID-19 vaccine during menstruation?
After a social media post saying that women should not take the COVID vaccine 5 days before and after their menstrual period went viral, a lot of people have this question of whether women should take the COVID-19 vaccine during menstruation or not.
According to that social media post, it is considered that the immunity of women is reduced before and after 5 days (including the time of their actual periods) of their menstrual period and hence taking the COVID vaccine during this time can harm the women.
In this article, we will discuss about the COVID-19 vaccine and periods and various apprehensions that people have about this issue. Questions like “Is covid vaccine safe?” and “How many days before and after period is safe?” will also be answered through this article.
Table Of Contents
Feel free to skip ahead if one topic catches your eye:
- COVID vaccines and menstruation: What do we know
- Is there any truth to the claim?
- Menstruation doesn’t limit the vaccine’s efficacy
- Do women tend to experience more side effects?
- Conclusion
COVID vaccines and menstruation: What do we know
Pregnant or newly pregnant women, who are older, overweight or have comorbidities like Hypertension or Diabetes have shown to be more affected by the coronavirus, although more research is required to be sure of the effects of the coronavirus on pregnant women and their babies.
It is essential for the population to take the COVID-19 vaccines at the earliest to stop the spread of infection in the community. These vaccines either have the mRNA or the gene of the virus that will stimulate the immune system to form antibodies against the virus so that when the real virus does enter the body, it can not cause much harm to the person.
It has been observed in various studies that while the vaccine does not make the person immune from getting the infection, these vaccines are highly effective in preventing a serious infection in people.
The research and studies done on the various potential side effects of the vaccines do not show any correlations between the COVID-19 vaccine and menstrual period. Being on their periods is not a contraindication for taking the vaccine for women.
The only people who are advised to not take the vaccine are patients who are immunocompromised due to whatever reason. These include patients who have undergone some organ transplant, are on long term steroid therapy, have diseases like AIDS, etc.
Menstruation in women does not cause immunodeficiency in women at any stage of the menstrual cycle.
Is there any truth to the claim?
People have expressed their concerns over the fact that reduced immunity during that time might lead to an insufficient response to the COVID vaccine and might even lead to coronavirus infection in the women.
There is absolutely no scientific basis behind this false concern and it has been clearly stated by the doctors and officials that there is no link between the COVID-19 vaccine and the menstrual cycle of women.
It is safe to take the COVID-19 vaccine during any time of your menstrual cycle. There is no chance of reduced immunity during the menstrual cycles that could harm the women if they take the COVID vaccine.
Some women in the US have claimed to have a disturbed menstrual cycle after the vaccination, there is no strong data or research linking any causal relationship between the COVID-19 vaccination and menstrual cycles.
And officials have cleared that even if any sort of relationship does exist between the COVID-19 vaccination and menstrual cycles, there is no cause of alarm over one disturbed menstrual cycle in the female. The human body is capable of restoring the normal rhythm of the menstrual cycle if there are no pathological factors like any underlying diseases, physical or psychological stress etc.
With the current situation of the world and specifically our country, there are a lot of heightened emotions like sadness and anger. Coupled with the lockdown and the inability to go out or do the usual stuff that people do, this has led to immense levels of stress in humans as of now.
All these factors can cause a change in your menstrual cycles but it is wrong and unscientific to correlate two things that have no connection.
Menstruation doesn’t limit the vaccine’s efficacy
Since menstruation does not cause an immunocompromised state in the body, there is no link between menstruation and vaccine’s efficacy. As mentioned earlier, women who get their vaccine on their periods have been reported to have the same immune response as any other individual.
Vaccine efficacy is similar and adequate for people who have taken both doses of vaccine according to the proper suggested schedule.
Do women tend to experience more side effects?
There is no evidence that proves that women tend to experience more side effects than their male counter-parts.
Most common side effects of the vaccine include fever, pain at the site of the injection, mild body ache, etc. All these symptoms last for 1 to 2 days and can be easily remedied by taking simple medications and using ice on the injection site.
Men and women experience similar side effects and these can be easily cured using the above mentioned remedies.
Conclusion
All these social media rumours have been denied by the doctors and activists as they urge the people to get vaccinated as soon as they get the chance as vaccines and preventive safety measures like masks and shields are the best way to stop this second wave.
Do not believe every social media post claiming to have information about COVID-19 during the pandemic. It is of utmost importance that all people of the country get vaccinated as quickly as possible to flatten the curve of the coronavirus.
Do not forward any such fake news to your contacts without researching it properly and go get vaccinated at the earliest. The women can get vaccinated at any time of their menstrual cycle and do not need to schedule their vaccination dates according to their periods.
