Coronavirus: What is "Vaccine Shedding" and do COVID vaccines pose any risks? All you need to know

Myths and misconceptions around coronavirus vaccines have been circulating in and around the world, leading to vaccine hesitancy and an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases. As is known and understood, vaccines are a mimicry of the original virus, which when injected into a person, activates the body's immune system to recognize the pathogen and respond to it. This in turn causes some side-effects and in some cases even triggers adverse reactions.

After receiving a certain type of vaccine, you may have heard of something called 'vaccine shedding', where vaccinated individuals shed vaccine components.

While possible, it does not occur in anyone who has received any of the COVID vaccines manufactured so far. Not all vaccines are produced in a similar fashion and there are many things that need to be understood before believing any sort of information. That said, here is everything you need to know about vaccine shedding and whether or not COVID vaccines pose any risk at all.

Many vaccine hesitant people believe that getting the COVID vaccine or interacting with someone who has been vaccinated is likely to do more damage than any good. By this, they mean "vaccine shedding", a process where a vaccinated individual releases, or sheds, the vaccine components either inside or outside of their body, increasing the risk of infection in others.

Experts believe that "viral shedding" is a possible phenomenon. However, it does not occur in every type of vaccine you get. Only after getting a certain type of vaccine called a live-attenuated vaccine can a person shed viral components.

Live-attenuated vaccines contain a weakened version of a pathogen that causes an illness, which needs to duplicate and multiply in order to trigger an immune response in the body. While these vaccines can shed, due to their weakened state, they cannot cause any disease.

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Apart from the live-attenuated vaccines, there are many other types of vaccines that are still in use. Unlike live-attenuated vaccines, these vaccines do not shed since they do not contain live pathogens. These are the vaccine types that cannot shed.

- Inactivated vaccines - Polio (IPV), Hepatitis A

- Toxoid (inactivated toxin) - Diphtheria, tetanus (part of DTaP combined immunization)

- Subunit/conjugate -Hepatitis B, Influenza (injection), Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), Pertussis (part of DTaP combined immunization), Pneumococcal, Meningococcal

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As of now, none of the coronavirus vaccines used anywhere in the world contain the live virus, which is why there is no way these can shed.

Vaccine shedding is possible, but experts have been very clear and straight forward about COVID vaccines not having the ability to shed. The only COVID-19 vaccines that have received authorized emergency use approvals currently are mRNA vaccines and viral vector vaccines.

The mRNA vaccine instructs the cells to make a protein or a piece of coronavirus spike protein so that it can produce an immune response in the body. This will in turn create antibodies needed to battle the deadly SARs-COV-2 virus.

Viral vector vaccines use a modified version of a different virus i.e. adenovirus that tells the cells to make coronavirus spike protein.

Both these vaccines in their own way instruct the cells to create spike proteins, which in no way can lead to viral shedding. That said, even though vaccine shedding can occur in rare cases i.e. in case of live-attenuated vaccines, it does not apply to any of the COVID vaccines available in the world.

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While vaccine shedding poses no great risk to healthy and fit individuals, people with compromised immunity should avoid taking such vaccines that can shed.

This may include people who have recently had an organ transplant, stem cell transplant, individuals living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or those who are receiving regular cancer treatment.

Keeping this in mind, if you're someone who has had a live-attenuated vaccine, keep distance from immunocompromised individuals. Maintain personal hygiene and frequently wash your hands.