Pfizer’s COVID-19 Vaccine May Be Less Effective in Obese People, Study Says.
Researchers in Italy have discovered that the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine may be less effective in obese individuals.
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Their study, which has not been peer reviewed, followed the antibody response caused by two doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.
In 248 healthcare workers, 99.5 percent were found to have developed an antibody response.
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In people who were overweight and obese, that response was found to be blunted.
In a separate study of healthcare workers in Brazil, COVID-19 reinfection was more common among people with a higher BMI.
Excess body fat can cause metabolic changes such as inflammation and insulin resistance.
This constant state of low-grade inflammation can weaken immune responses, which means it’s harder for the body to fight off infection.
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Previous research has found that obesity, aka a BMI over 30, increases the risk of dying from COVID-19 by almost 50 percent.
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It also increases the risk of being hospitalized with COVID-19 by 113 percent
