This is an insightful Twitter thread posted by
Kurt Eichenwald. a New York Times bestselling author, and former senior writer at NYT and Newsweek. It's a bit lengthy for a Twitter thread, but it is well worth the effort to read:
Since COVID conspiracy theorists are once again spreading disinformation (coming from the Epoch Times no less) and proving their scientific illiteracy, I want to come in one more time to explain to those who might need to tell the loons in your life why this is nonsense.
This is about COVID vaccines and blood clots. First, this whole issue has been known since 10/2020. Before we get into the new study, an explainer on why blood clots can emerge in rare, rare instances.
COVID itself is not a respiratory disease. Instead, current science is growing in agreement that it is a vascular disease. While the infection comes in through the mucus membranes/lungs etc, what happens is that the virus sets off a reaction in the body - a cytokine storm - and the biggest fight comes through the vascular system. The combination of the virus and the cytokine storm spreads the infection throughout the body, creating blood clots, both small and large, throughout the entire system. This is *very frequent* with COVID.
Once these clots form from the disease, organs in the flow of major vessels begin to be deprived of oxygen, resulting in the death of tissue in the organ. This is why there is so much kidney, brain, and cardiac damage - as well as limb damage - because the blood clots from COVID are so endemic in the disease. Topping this is the damage to the lungs, where the biggest fight between the immune system and the virus goes on. This is why people struggle to breathe, but also why they suffer so many symptoms. I fully anticipate that the science will ultimately show that long covid is the consequence of tissue damage to major organs that is not or is slowly getting repaired.
Now, how this relates to the vaccine: Let's stick with mRNA first (Pfizer and Moderna). The amazing thing about the mRNA vaccine is that your body is being tricked into believing you are infected without the use of attenuated (weakened) or dead viruses, which is the traditional method of vaccination. Instead, the mRNA has used the genome of the COVID virus to create an imposter virus, which has no means of infecting you. It is as if you are experiencing someone in a Dracula costume rather than Dracula himself. Your eyes might not be able to tell the difference. And your immune system can't tell the difference between the non-viral mRNA protein versus the virus itself. So, your body attacks the non-virus, the guy in the Dracula costume. Kicking your adaptive immune system develops a tailored response to the COVID virus itself, since, after vaccination, it will recognize molecules it previously encountered, leading to protection against serious infection....but remember: Blood clots are caused by the fight between your immune system and the virus. (NOTE: People who say "I don't need the vaccine, I have an immune system" have no understanding of the difference between the innate immune system, which you are largely born with, and the adaptive immune system, which requires you to become infected or vaccinated to get kick-started.)
Ok, so the battle between the immune system & the virus causes blood clots in those who get seriously ill, and the unvaccinated are more likely to get seriously ill, but the battle between the immune system & what it has been tricked to believe is the COVID virus by vaccination is not close to what happens in the real fight, just like taking on a guy in a Dracula costume won't be as tough as fighting Dracula. There is no cytokine storm when you are vaccinated. Still, in very very rare instances, the body's reaction to the vaccine can lead to a small number of blood clots, just like when COVID & the cytokine storm can lead to severe myocarditis, the fight between the immune system and the fake virus can lead to myocarditis in very very rare circumstances.
Now, again, this all known day one of vaccines. The question was always, which caused the highest number of blood clots and which the lowest. What is known as the adenovirus vaccines (Johnson & Johnson, Astro Zeneca) were found pretty quickly to have a higher incidence of the rare, rare blood clotting, (called TTS for "thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome") But again, this is a higher incidence than mRNA of a very rare side-effect.
What set off all the loons was the Epoch Times transforming
a recent peer-reviewed study in the BMJ (the British Medical Journal) that is a comparison determining precisely how much more likely the adenovirus vaccines were to cause blood clots than the mRNA vaccines. This WASNT a finding that vaccines cause blood clots, it was studying the probabilities in terms of how much more likely the adenovirus vaccines were to cause the rare, rare blood clots than mRNA. Point 1: COVID causes blood clots, small & large, 90% of the time when the infected person is symptomatic. The percentage of the time that people who have been vaccinated have blood clots is infinitesimally small. But because the entire point of medicine is to provide the most benefit with the lowest side effects, which vaccine causes this unlikely side effect is important to know. What the BMJ study found was that the adenovirus vaccines were 30% higher than mRNA vaccines for this rare, rare side effect. The conclusion? "Although rare, the observed risks after adenovirus-based vaccines should be considered when planning further immunisation campaigns and future vaccine development.'' Again, the study calls this "a very rare side effect" for the adenovirus vaccines, which means that people with the mRNA vaccines have a 30% lower probability for this "very rare side effect."
Now, the scientifically illiterate always focus on rare side effects as frightening rather than the immense damage of the actual diseases being fought by the drugs (they ignore efficacy). There are all sorts of studies about why some people are frightened of rare side effects rather than the dangers of the disease, but I'm not going to get into them here. Google them - they're fascinating.
Where we are though is the COVID ignorant conspiracy theorists are relying on misinformation of the Epoch Times misrepresenting a study - and also revealing they have paid absolutely no attention to the COVID science on infection and vaccines for more than two years. Unfortunately, reckless scientific stupidity that increases the risk of death is considered equal to discussions by scientists who have spent careers on infectious disease & virology. Worse, tweets of the scientifically illiterate go viral as smug, stupid people rush in to preen about their "intelligence.'
@kurteichenwald: Sigh. Since COVID conspiracy theorists are once again spreading disinformation (coming from the Epoch Times no less) and proving their scientific illiteracy, I want to come in one more time to expla...…
threadreaderapp.com
www.thehealthsite.com
