/oss/taxonomy/term/5317/all en /oss/article/covid-19/next-preventing-emergence-new-variants <hr /> <p>This article was originally published in <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/christopher-labos-next-preventing-the-emergence-of-new-variants">the Montreal Gazette</a></p> Fri, 28 Jan 2022 20:35:49 +0000 Christopher Labos MD, MSc 9013 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19/shedding-light-illusionary-connections <p>We may have left 2021 behind, but unfortunately, the misinformation that characterized the past year continues unabated. Betty White, comedienne extraordinaire, passed away on December 31, just eighteen days shy of her one-hundredth birthday. It didn’t take long for zealous members of the anti-vax community to link her death with the booster shot she received three days earlier.  </p> Fri, 07 Jan 2022 21:37:05 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8972 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-pseudoscience/are-triple-vaccinated-people-more-likely-be-infected-omicron-variant-unvaccinated <p>You may not have heard of Blachier, but in France TV viewers are as familiar with his face as we are here with Dr. Fauci’s. And he caused the COVID pot to boil over a couple of days ago when he supposedly claimed that data from Denmark show that people who are triple vaccinated are more likely to be infected with the Omicron variant than the unvaccinated. Let’s take a look.</p> Fri, 17 Dec 2021 21:23:39 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8950 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19/wider-eligibility-covid-booster-shots-makes-sense <hr /> <p>This article was originally published in <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/christopher-labos-wider-eligibility-for-covid-booster-shots-makes-sense">the Montreal Gazette</a></p> <hr /> <p>Recently, Canada’s National Advisory Committee on Immunization lowered the recommended age for a COVID-19 booster shot from 70 and up to 50 and up, with the same proviso that it be at least six months after the second dose. It said those ages 18 to 49 could be offered a booster based on their individual risk and the degree of COVID-19 spread in their area.</p> Fri, 10 Dec 2021 21:54:16 +0000 Christopher Labos MD, MSc 8949 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19/why-its-important-vaccinate-children-against-covid <hr /> <p>This article was originally published in <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/christopher-labos-why-its-important-to-vaccinate-children-against-covid">the Montreal Gazette</a></p> <hr /> <p>Now that Health Canada has approved the COVID-19 vaccine for children ages five to 11 years and appointments can be booked <a href="https://portal3.clicsante.ca/">on Clic-Santé,</a> with any luck most should be able to get at least one dose before the holidays.</p> <p>But some parents are still hesitant about vaccinating their children.</p> Fri, 26 Nov 2021 21:50:25 +0000 Christopher Labos MD, MSc 8935 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-health-and-nutrition-pseudoscience/science-vs-joe-rogan <p>“Lot of times, we’re drinking or we’re high, you know, and I say stupid shit.” Coming from a teenager,<a href="https://youtu.be/PloZ-GB9tzA?t=256"> </a><a href="https://youtu.be/PloZ-GB9tzA?t=256">this statement</a> may invoke memories of your own adolescence. But carried by the voice of then-53-year-old Joe Rogan defending his off-the-cuff, on-the-air remarks about COVID vaccines in young adults, it reeks of arrested development.</p> Sat, 20 Nov 2021 09:00:00 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 8927 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-health-and-nutrition/lets-play-jeopardy-clue-quarterback-who-believes-homeopathic-immunization <p>That would be the same Aaron Rodgers, MVP quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, who filled in admirably as guest host on the popular game show that is associated with intelligence. In this case, his choice of being immunized, not with a vaccine, but rather with a homeopathic remedy, does not scream intelligence. Rodgers claims that he is “not an anti-vax flat earther,” he is a “critical thinker.” Really? How much critical thinking did he do before jumping on the homeopathy bandwagon? </p> Fri, 05 Nov 2021 21:04:17 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8917 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19/assessing-risks-vaccine-side-effects <hr /> <p>This article was first published in <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/christopher-labos-assessing-the-risks-of-vaccine-side-effects">the Montreal Gazette</a></p> Fri, 15 Oct 2021 20:39:56 +0000 Christopher Labos MD, MSc 8900 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19/statistics-behind-breakthrough-infections <p>Recently we have seen a rash of headlines along the lines of “75% of infected people were fully vaccinated” atop stories describing a “super-spreader” event in Massachusetts. While that statistic is correct, it needs to be put into context. First, let’s note that the outbreak, in which 360 out of 469 cases (75%) were among vaccinated individuals, was linked with densely packed indoor and outdoor events on the July 4th weekend with few people wearing masks. Next, let’s examine that scary 75% number.</p> Fri, 27 Aug 2021 17:37:35 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8823 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19/internet-full-claims-vaccines-do-not-protect-us-covid-19-what-recent-evidence-there-they-do <p>It is true that the original protection rate of over 90% in the trials has not been matched by real-life experience, but that was to be expected. However, the protection is still significant. Recent data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) shows that among frontline workers vaccines are 66% effective even when most infections are due to the delta variant.</p> Fri, 27 Aug 2021 16:37:50 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8821 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-health/how-we-know-covid-19-vaccines-work <p>We keep hearing that the COVID-19 vaccines work but some people have asked us, “How do we know that they work?”</p> <p>Luckily, we have a growing trove of data that show that these vaccines are indeed effective against catching the virus, transmitting it to other people, and ending up in the hospital because of it.</p> Fri, 23 Jul 2021 19:51:58 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 8790 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19/can-vaccines-make-our-body-magnetic <p>Now I’m even more attracted to the COVID vaccines than I used to be! That’s because I recently learned that they do not only equip us with antibodies against the virus, they also make our bodies magnetic! And we know that magnets can heal, don’t we? So now we should see massive healing of all sorts of diseases as the newly magnetized COVID vaccine recipients spread across the globe.</p> Fri, 11 Jun 2021 16:57:15 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8759 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-health/what-expect-covid-19-vaccine-when-youre-expecting-or-breastfeeding <p>What should public health bodies do in the absence of data? And, even more importantly, what should the people left to make an important health decision do when no data is available?</p> <p>I have seen a lot of anxiety over the question of whether or not people who are pregnant or breastfeeding should get the COVID-19 vaccine. These very same people were prevented from participating in the large clinical trials in which these vaccines were put to the test. Therefore, we don’t have trial data on these groups of people, but they must now make a decision based on seemingly no data at all.</p> Fri, 28 May 2021 20:21:06 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 8750 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-health/our-mix-and-match-vaccination-strategy <hr /> <p>This article was first published in <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/christopher-labos-our-mix-and-match-vaccination-strategy">The Montreal Gazette.</a></p> Fri, 30 Apr 2021 21:57:06 +0000 Christopher Labos MD, MSc 8719 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-health-general-science/humans-sometimes-get-way-science <p>I never expected to read the word “glooped” in a BBC article. An<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-56556806"> investigation by the BBC programme Panorama</a> recently revealed troubling behaviour on the part of some technicians at one of the major UK COVID-19 testing laboratories. These laboratories receive the swabs that went up the nose and down the throat of potential coronavirus hosts. Technicians there must extract the genetic material present and try to amplify coronavirus-specific sequences using a test known as PCR to check for the presence of the virus.</p> Fri, 02 Apr 2021 19:50:04 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 8676 at /oss