Covid vaccine and steroids (are there any risks?) Anabolic steroids boost physical health, strength, endurance and may alter immunity. Anabolic steroids strengthen nonspecific immunity, helping fight various infections. However, on prolonged abuse, they may somewhat weaken immunity in some cases. Covid vaccine, on other hand, helps boost immune response specifically toward the covid-19, a type of coronavirus. As vaccination against covid has started, there is much confusion. This is because there are different types of vaccines for the condition. There is no known disease against which such dissimilar vaccines are available. At present, there are four types of corona vaccines: 1. Whole virus – as the name says, is made by using weakened coronavirus. This virus cannot harm health or cause disease, but it can still mount an immune response. This is one of the classical approaches used by many vaccines. These vaccines are generally regarded as relatively safe and can be stored in usual cold storage (+2 to +8 degrees Celcius). 2. Protein subunit – uses just a fragment of viral protein instead of the whole virus. It uses protein segments that can act as antigens and thus lead to immune response. Since such vaccines only use viral or microbial protein segments, they are generally safer than whole virus vaccines. However, they may also be weaker than other vaccines. 3. Nucleic acid- It is one of the more modern approaches that involve injecting either DNA or RNA, which in turn invade body cells and instruct them to produce viral antigens. As the viral antigen production starts, the immune system starts producing antibodies resulting in immunity towards the disease. Perhaps the biggest downside of these vaccines is that RNA or DNA is unstable, and hence such vaccines must be stored at extremely low temperatures like -70 degrees. 4. Viral vector – is yet another novel approach. In this approach, some other virus is used that is safe for humans but can still trigger an immune response. For example, some manufacturers use a safer type of adenovirus (genetically modified), a virus that causes the common cold, to trigger an immune response against covid-19. Since there are numerous new vaccines for covid, people are right to be worried. Fortunately, safety data shows that most of these vaccines are pretty safe. Although there may be huge differences between their efficacy nevertheless, most can help prevent severe covid infection.
How steroids interact with vaccines? Now, returning to the primary question about the interaction between anabolic steroids and vaccines. Considering the pharmacology of anabolic steroids, it would be safe to say that they cannot interact with vaccines in any way. However, it is worth noticing that anabolic steroids are mild immune modulators. It means that there are chances that they may alter immune response to vaccines in some individuals, resulting in less benefit from vaccination. However, this is not a cause for serious concern, as any such effect on immunity seems to be very small. It is the reason that anabolic steroids are even approved for managing muscle wasting associated with AIDS or HIV infection. To conclude, it may be a good idea to get vaccinated against covid when taking a break from steroids or during the PCT phase. However, steroid use is not a reason for refusing the vaccine, as there are no known adverse interactions between them.