Covid-19 vaccines do NOT affect fertility, expert claims – warning women are being duped by ‘rumours and myths’ about the jabs circulating online

• Several rumours have been circulating about the vaccine’s effects on fertility
• Professor Lucy Chappell has reassured there is ‘absolutely no basis for concerns’
• However, she added that pregnancy, the new virus and vaccines are ‘a constantly evolving area’ which needs further research 

After months of anticipation, the first Covid-19 vaccines finally started being administered in the UK last month. 

Amid the rollout, several rumours and myths have been circulating about the vaccine, including fears that the jab could affect fertility. 

Now, Professor Lucy Chappell, NIHR Research Professor in Obstetrics at King’s College London, is attempting to reassure women that the Covid-19 jab will not affect their fertility. 

Her advice comes shortly after a poll of 55,642 Brits found that more than a quarter of 18-to-34-year-old women said they would say no to the jab, citing concerns over the vaccine’s effect on fertility and pregnancies. 

Amid the vaccine rollout, several rumours and myths have been circulating about the vaccine, including fears that the jab could affect fertility (stock image)

COVID-19 VACCINE FEARS 

Young non-voting women are most likely to turn down a Covid vaccine if it were available tomorrow, a poll has found.

While more than 78 per cent of those sampled said they would accept the jab, nearly a fifth (18 per cent) intend to refuse it.

The Find Out Now poll, which sampled 55,642 people, also found the younger you are, the more likely you are to be anti-vaccination.

More than a quarter of 18-to- 34-year-old women said they would say no to the jab, citing their concerns over the vaccine’s effect on fertility and pregnancies.

By contrast, only seven per cent of those aged 65 and over said the same.

Professor Chappell says it is understandable that there have been questions about the new vaccines but notes that fearful claims which can be easily found online have never been substantiated.

‘I dug into all those sources and I can see absolutely no basis for concerns about any of the Covid-19 vaccines that are licensed in the UK and fertility,’ she told the PA news agency.

She described the claims as ‘spurious’ because they relate to similarities between some aspects of the proteins involved in fertility and the Covid-19 vaccines, but these are ‘very speculative and entirely not supported by any of the data’.

There is no concern from a biological point of view and evidence has not been presented that women who have been vaccinated have gone on to have fertility problems, she said.

Pregnancy, the new virus and vaccines are ‘a constantly evolving area’ which needs further research, as there is very limited experience in trials on pregnant women, according to Prof Chappell.

She hopes that vaccine companies may change this situation in the future.

Women who are in the highest risk Covid-19 groups, such as carers and health workers or the clinically extremely vulnerable such as those with underlying health conditions, should try to have ‘a sensible discussion’ about their concerns about the jab.

Women who are in the highest risk Covid-19 groups, such as carers and health workers, or the clinically extremely vulnerable such as those with underlying health conditions should try to have ‘a sensible discussion’ about their concerns about the jab (stock image)

They are among the first phase of people to be vaccinated and their obstetrician or midwife is the obvious person to try and seek useful information from.

Prof Chappell suggested that ‘we may be in a different place in six months in terms of how we can have those discussions’ as new and updated information comes through from the real-life current use of vaccines.

Bigger trials are needed involving pregnant women to help answer questions about safety and risk but how the woman views her risk of exposure and complications is an important factor that needs to be taken into the mix.

Prof Chappell said there are ‘very clear checks and balances’ involving the women who take part in research trials.

Professor Chappell’s advice comes shortly after a poll revealed that young women are the most likely to turn down the Covid-19 vaccine.

The Find Out Now poll, which sampled 55,642 people, found that more than a quarter of 18-to- 34-year-old women said they would say no to the jab, citing their concerns over the vaccine’s effect on fertility and pregnancies.

By contrast, only seven per cent of those aged 65 and over said the same. 

WHY CAN’T PREGNANT WOMEN HAVE THE COVID-19 VACCINE? 

The UK Government has issued guidelines making it clear mothers-to-be should not be inoculated until after they’ve given birth.

Women who think they might be pregnant are urged to delay vaccination until they are certain they are not, and those trying for a baby should not be immunised either.

However, the measure is purely precautionary and it is not uncommon to exclude some groups from taking brand new vaccines.

Pfizer’s vaccine sailed through approval from Britain’s medical watchdog with a good safety rating and no evidence to suggest pregnant women are at risk.

But scientists behind the jab haven’t tested it on pregnant or breastfeeding women – often the case in scientific trials for ethical reasons – so there is no concrete evidence showing it would be safe and effective. 

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