vaccination, it is noted in the study that making
general statements about vaccines causing deaths is
not a valid medical practice.

Vaccines save thousands of people from
preventable human diseases each year and are one of
the biggest strides of modern medicine. Despite this,
many people are apprehensive about taking vaccines
because of adverse side effects or fear of death or
further harm—and these anxieties are not completely
unfounded. For instance, an incident in 1955 called
the “Cutter Incident” became known as “one of the
worst pharmaceutical disasters in US history.’ A flaw
in the Salk polio vaccine making process at Cutter
Laboratories led to a production of what was originally
thought to be an inactivated vaccine but ended
up containing the actual disease it was supposed
to prevent. As a result, in 40,000 cases of polio, 51
cases ended up with permanent paralysis and five
deaths were recorded in vaccinated individuals.
Another 113 cases of paralysis and five more deaths
were noted among people with contact to those who
were vaccinated. As big of a disaster as this was, this
isolated incident was what pushed pharmaceutical
companies and governments for more extensive
testing, monitoring, and regulation for vaccines.
Furthermore, while it is minimal, there is still a risk
of death with some vaccines—namely the smallpox
vaccine which based on historical data is about one
death per million people receiving the first round of
inoculations. This number decreases to one death per
four million people receiving a second dose, according
to the 2015 study.

For the smallpox vaccine, deaths have also been
known to happen among non-vaccinated people
who have had contact with the vaccination site of a
vaccinated person. Smallpox vaccinations of pregnant
women can also increase the risk of fetal infection
which causes stillbirths or infant death, according to
the same study. While deaths and adverse side effects
caused by vaccines are still incredibly rare, that is
not to say that they don’t happen at all or that the
issue should not be discussed. However, health care
providers can decrease this risk by properly screening
for precautions and with a 15-minute waiting period
after patients receive a vaccine to reduce the risk of
fall-related injuries or syncope. The establishment of
The Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS)
in 1990 allows people to report medical events
following vaccines. The program has helped to identify
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problem after the first rotavirus vaccine was introduced
and other neurological and gastrointestinal diseases
related to yellow fever.

COVID VACCINES IN CANADA
Despite the quick rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines,
the testing and development phase of a vaccine is
usually a long and arduous process. According to
Wellcome Trust, a research-based charity from the UK,
the research phase of a vaccine can take anywhere
from two to five years and after that the vaccine is put
through extensive testing phases. In total, a vaccine
can take up to 10 years to fully develop and cost up to
$500 million. Amazingly, the COVID-19 vaccine was
developed in less than a year with trials starting in
April 2020 for the Pfizer vaccine and later in July for the
Moderna vaccine. However, the effects on pregnant
and breastfeeding women are unknown as those
groups were left out of the clinical trials. The small
testing period with this vaccine compared to other
vaccines has given many people cause for trepidation
when it comes to receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.
According to a survey of 2002 Canadians by KPMG, 8

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out of 10 Canadians said they would line up to get the
vaccine, but only about 50 percent said they feel safe
taking it. A quarter of them worry it is not safe but are
willing to take the risk to get the economy, and their
lives back on track. Health authorities say the benefits
outweigh the risks of this vaccine, and Health Canada
has weekly reports on the adverse effects of the
vaccine with five “serious” reactions out of more than
115,000 administered doses (as of January 1).

The first limited round of vaccinations came to
Canada in December of 2020 with health care workers
being the first to receive the inoculations. “Between
the early doses we have already received, and the
shipments now scheduled, we're on track to have at
least 1.2-million doses from both Pfizer and Moderna
delivered by January 31,’ PM Justin Trudeau said in a
CBC article. Canada has secured contracts with Pfizer
BioNTech for 20-million doses and 40-million doses for
Moderna by the end of 2021.

MODERNA VS PFIZER

So, if you are part of the population that decides you
want to take the vaccine, all that’s left is to decide
which one to take. What's the real difference between
the two? Health Canada authorized Moderna as a
vaccine after analyzing the phase three trial results
which tested the vaccine on 30,000 people in the US.
Half of the study group received the vaccine while the
other half received a placebo and was found to be 9411
percent effective in participants with no prior exposure
to COVID-19 and nearly 87 percent effective in people
over 65 years old. Although, Health Canada warns
people to make sure they are not allergic to ingredients
before taking the vaccine and does not recommend it
for people who currently have symptoms of the virus.
Both vaccines work by using mRNA technology which
directs cells to produce proteins triggering an immune
response to prevent or fight the virus, and both require

two doses—a primer and a booster shot—taken a
month apart.

The Pfizer vaccine is for people as young as 16
years old has shown to be about 95 percent efficient
at preventing symptomatic COVID-19 infection while
Moderna, for people 18 and up, sits at 94.1 percent
effective and effectiveness is lowered when the person
receiving the vaccine is over 65. It is still unclear
whether the vaccines prevent asymptomatic infection
or if vaccinated people can still transmit the virus
if they are infected but show no symptoms. Pfizer
contains 30 micrograms of the vaccine while Moderna
is 100 micrograms, meaning it is more potent per dose,
yet less effective than Pfizer. Pfizer has also been
under scrutiny lately as allergic reactions have been
reported with the vaccine that were not seen during
the clinal trial phase. Furthermore, in Norway, the
medicines agency has reported that 29 people have
suffered side effects such as fever or frailness resulting
in 13 deaths. All of the deaths were with people over 80
and living in care homes.

Vaccines are extensively tested to ensure safety for
people who take them. Of course, with a smaller
testing period compared to other vaccines (10 years
compared to less than a year) it's no surprise that
people are feeling hesitant about taking the COVID-19
vaccine. As of now, it is unclear what the long-term
effects of the COVID-19 vaccines could be since

it’s only been in use for less than a year. However,
health authorities tell us that the short-term effect is
inoculation towards the coronavirus. If someone does
decide they should take it, caution should be taken

by those who are pregnant or breastfeeding, currently
have COVID-19 symptoms, or those who are allergic to
the vaccine's ingredients.

The effects on pregnant and breastfeeding women are unknown
as those groups were left out of the clinical trials.