This type of coronavirus would be strong enough to break through the vaccines.
Just when we thought it may be almost over, the pandemic has begun ramping up again in places. At the time of this writing, cases of the novel coronavirus are soaring in the UK, and beginning to rise in the US, Germany, Thailand and elsewhere around the globe. As many people have already been vaccinated, what’s behind the surge and what could it mean? Here’s a look.
The Force of the Delta Variant
Experts are saying much of what we are seeing right now as cases rise is the result of the Delta variant. This variant of COVID-19 is said to be more contagious than the original strain. It’s also potentially more deadly. The Delta variant has been hitting younger age groups with greater force and is thought to be targeting unvaccinated groups with vigour. At the time of this writing in the US, over 90% of COVID-19 deaths are happening in people who are unvaccinated. So, go get that vaccine. It’ll do you less harm than catching the virus will.
The Worst Case Scenario
Basically, the current rollout of the vaccine is a race against the variants. The COVID-19 vaccines we are using at the moment were built to protect us from the original strain of the virus. Thankfully, they are also still providing a great deal of protection against the coronavirus variants as well. But if the world takes too long to get people vaccinated, we give the virus time to mutate even further. What can happen is, the virus can figure out how to change itself in order to win out against the vaccines. If and when this happens, the vaccines we are using now won’t be effective anymore. We’ll all be back at square one.
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Pandemics don’t go on forever, but the last thing we want is to prolong this one even further. In places like the UK where COVID-19 cases soared to enormous heights in a fourth wave this July, experts fear it could be the perfect petri dish for the scenario described above. High case numbers coupled with relatively strong numbers of people vaccinated can result in an immune escape variant. An immune escape variant is one that could reinfect people who have already had COVID-19. It could also render the vaccines we have useless. It’s a strain of the virus that has mutated to be strong enough to survive the vaccines. We would need a second round to be protected once again. It’s definitely something we want to avoid.
The Lamda Variant
The World Health Organization (WHO) began naming the coronavirus variants after letters in the Greek alphabet back in June 2021. This was done in an effort to increase clarity and remove some of the stigma that can be associated with the variants since they tend to be traced to specific countries of origin. In addition to the Delta variant, the Lamda variant surfaced in August 2020. It’s now present in the US and elsewhere worldwide.
At the time of this writing, very few cases of COVID-19 in the US are attributed to this variant. The Lambda variant hasn’t yet proven to be worse than the Delta variant, and while the WHO has classified it as a “variant of interest” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) hasn’t yet. The good news is that a “variant of interest” is a step below a “variant of concern”. Time will tell if this changes.
How to Protect Yourself
There’s no winning situation with the coronavirus pandemic. Getting vaccinated really does help. While it can be uncomfortable for a day or two, after a while you won’t even feel the difference between having gotten the shot and not. But inside, your immune system will be ready. Being vaccinated truly reduces your chances of dying from the coronavirus. It can also vastly reduce your chances of having to put your life on hold while you’re hospitalized to get better.
The UK is a perfect example of this, at the moment. COVID-19 cases are soaring in the country with tens of thousands of cases per day. Deaths are relatively low, though. Less than 100 people are dying from the virus per day. And this is in part because the majority of the population has been vaccinated.
You can’t tell with this virus who will fare well and who won’t. It’s impossible to tell who will get sick and die and who will be fine. If you don’t want to get vaccinated for yourself, do it for those around you. Protect yourself for your kids’ sake. Get vaccinated in order to help out your co-workers. Do it for your neighbors. It’s easy and it’s free.
photo credits: Thanumporn Thongkongkaew/Shutterstock.com
