Allergies And Vaccinations

 With vaccinations reviving up I've been looking into the options, the process and of course the ingredients. I'm extremely allergic to the flu shot so my first thought was, could this type a vaccine cause as bad of a reaction as the flu shot?

Well first off there is good news, there are no animal derived ingredients in the Moderna and Pfiser vaccines. They also do not contain the amount of preservatives or formaldehyde like the flu vaccine. You can watch a helpful webinar by Food Allergy Canada on "Food Allergy And Covid 19" featuring the experts at this link for more information.

 COVID-19 vaccines and food allergy: Get the facts webinar

The Moderna and Pfiser vaccines are different from the flu vaccine in that they do not use a live virus. Instead these mRNA (RNA stands for ribonucleic acid) "vaccines teach our cells how to make a protein that will trigger an immune response without using the live virus that causes COVID-19. Once triggered, our body then makes antibodies."*  This mRNA concept has been around for quiet some time, from what I've been able find it's been around for decades. One of the earliest scientific reports I found was from 1990. So I don't know about you but I found this bit of knowledge to be pretty darn comforting.

Below I've included a list of ingredients along with their basic meaning for three different approved vaccines in Canada. 

Moderna

Medicinal ingredient
- mRNA

Non-medicinal ingredients

- 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DSPC)
("Distearoylphosphatidylcholine is a phosphatidylcholine, a kind of phospholipid.")**

- acetic acid
("systematically named ethanoic acid, is a colourless liquid organic compound." "Vinegar is no less than 4% acetic acid by volume, making acetic acid the main component of vinegar apart from water.")**

- cholesterol (a lipid)

- lipid SM-102
(Lipids are an important component of living cells. Together with carbohydrates and proteins, lipids are the main constituents of plant and animal cells.)**

- polyethylene glycol (PEG) 2000 DMG
(Used in lipid nanoparticle preparation for siRNA (small interfering RNA) delivery.)

- sodium acetate (organic sodium salt.)

 
- sucrose (common sugar)

- tromethamine
(Organic compound extensively used in biochemistry and molecular biology as a component of buffer solutions.)**

 
- tromethamine hydrochloride (biologically inert amino alcohol.)
- water for injection

Pfizer-BioNTech

Medicinal ingredient
- mRNA

Non-medicinal ingredients

- ALC-0315 = ((4-hydroxybutyl)azanediyl)bis(hexane-6,1-diyl)bis(2-hexyldecanoate) 

(a component of the lipid mixture)**

- ALC-0159 = 2-[(polyethylene glycol)-2000]-N,N-ditetradecylacetamide
(ALC-0159 is a PEG/lipid conjugate)**

- 1,2-Distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine  (derives from an octadecanoic acid.)

- cholesterol (a lipid)

- dibasic sodium phosphate dihydrate
(a reagent with a very high buffering capacity. Used in many applications including the purification of antibodies.)***

 
- monobasic potassium phosphate
(inorganic compound. It's often used as a fertilizer, food additive, and buffering agent.)**

- potassium chloride (a metal halide salt composed of potassium and chlorine)**

- sodium chloride (salt)

- sucrose (sugar)

- water for injection

The Astra Zeneca vaccine is viral vector-based. They use a harmless virus (Adenoviruses) like the ones that causes a cold to give instructions to the proteins. In this way the body can initiate a immune response.

AstraZeneca

Medicinal ingredient
- Adenovirus vector vaccine

Non-medicinal ingredients

- disodium edetate dihydrate (EDTA)
(a chemical that binds and holds on to (chelates) minerals and metals such as chromium, iron, lead...)

- ethanol   (organic compound, simple alcohol)**

L-histidine   (Histidine is an α-amino acid that is used in the biosynthesis of proteins)**

- L-histidine hydrochloride monohydrate 

(Histidine monohydrochloride is used in biopharmaceutical manufacturing as a buffer in formulation.     It is often used along with histidine to prepare histidine buffer with the desired pH value.)

- magnesium chloride hexahydrate   
(used as a source of magnesium ions, which are essential for many cellular activities.)

- polysorbate 80
(a nonionic surfactant and emulsifier often used in foods and cosmetics. A synthetic compound.)**

- sodium chloride (salt)
- sucrose (sugar)
- water for injection

All in all I found all this information extremely helpful.  While I still have allergies to some of the ingredients the mRNA vaccines offer me less allergens and exposure.  A big comfort in my concerns about an extreme allergic reaction. By the ingredients listed, the Moderna vaccine offers me the least allergic ingredients. While I expect a reaction it shouldn't be anywhere near as bad.  

I'm sure you can hear my huge sigh of relief from here...

 
I hope you found this information helpful and if you're looking for more information on these vaccines please check out these helpful links.

Vaccines for Covid 19  Information on Canadian vaccines.

immunizebc.ca   Questions and Answers on all vaccines including Covid 19.

foodallergycanada.ca  Covid 19 and food allergies.

Sources & Source Links.

* canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/drugs-health-products/covid19-industry/drugs-vaccines-treatments/vaccines/moderna.html
** wikipedia.org
*** scbt.com/p/sodium-phosphate-dibasic-dihydrate-10028-24-7
foodallergycanada.ca

immunize.ca/questions-and-answers

the-scientist.com
canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/coronavirus-disease-covid-19/vaccines.html?utm_campaign=hc-sc-covidvaccine-20-21&utm_medium=sem&utm_source=ggl&utm_content=ad-text-en&utm_term=covid%20vaccines&adv=2021-0071&id_campaign=12110288357&id_source=116175240853&id_content=492345141565&gclid=CLvIzMHwwe8CFc_IfgodwuwPcw&gclsrc=ds