No, COVID-19 vaccines do not 'eat' children's immune systems | Fact check

The claim: Study shows mRNA vaccines 'eat' children’s immune systems

An Aug. 21 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) shares an article that makes an alarming claim about a study on COVID-19 vaccines and children.

“German Study: mRNA Shots ‘Eat Away’ at Children’s Immune Systems,” reads the headline of the article from The People’s Voice.

The post was liked more than 4,000 times in nine days.

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Our rating: False

The study says nothing of the sort. It identifies an increase in a certain type of antibody after repeated vaccinations but draws no conclusion about its significance. Experts told USA TODAY the study found all the children taking part were healthy.

Study finds no 'clinical evidence of any clinical problem'

The claim revolves around a study by German researchers looking at the immune response of 14 healthy children between the ages of 5 and 11 who received two doses of Pfizer’s mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. The researchers noted that after a year the children had higher levels of IgG4 antibodies, a rarer subclass of antibodies.

While the article in The People’s Voice claims researchers found the vaccines dangerously altered the immune systems and could be precursors to significant health issues, the researchers did not draw these conclusions, experts told USA TODAY. The experts questioned whether the finding even should prompt further research, as the children were acknowledged to be healthy in the study.

“It’s an immunological finding in search of clinical significance,” said Dr. Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Offit told USA TODAY that conducting research based on the study to identify medical conditions linked to vaccine-induced IGG4 levels would be “backwards.” Researchers typically start with a clinical finding – an observed condition – then try to see if there is a way it could have been caused.

For example, he noted that when people who received the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine started reporting blood clots, researchers looked for distinguishing aspects of the clots. They discovered the clots formed without the elevated levels of platelets typically seen with blood clots. They were then able to identify an association between the vaccine and a factor connected to blood clots with lower levels of platelets, “tying the problem together with the biological process,” he said.

“In this case, you don’t have clinical evidence of any clinical problem,” he said of the German study.

Dr. William Petri, chief of the infectious diseases and international health division at the University of Virginia, noted the German researchers even applauded the value of mRNA-based vaccines.

The study says, "The new technology of mRNA-based vaccination proved to be one of the most important tools to fight the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, allowing safe and effective mass vaccination, saving millions of lives and opening the possibility of developing wide-ranging future therapeutics."

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The People's Voice article correctly notes that elevated IgG4 has been linked to certain medical conditions but portrays the antibodies as only harmful. A review published in 2023 points out that an IgG4 response can be "detrimental" when dealing with some autoimmune conditions and anti-tumor treatments, but it can be beneficial when dealing with issues such as allergens and parasites.

The People’s Voice is a frequent source of misinformation, particularly around COVID-19 and mRNA vaccines. USA TODAY has debunked false claims from it that the vaccines cause brain damage, that the vaccines killed millions and that a sprayable vaccine for mass involuntary immunizations had been developed.

The People’s Voice piece contains verbatim content of an article posted to the website of Children’s Health Defense, an organization started by former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. that advocates against many FDA-approved vaccines for children. That article, however, does not claim the vaccines “eat” immune systems, though it does share warnings of negative consequences of elevated IgG4. USA TODAY previously debunked a claim by the group that linked an RSV treatment to deaths of a dozen infants worldwide, when the deaths actually were documented to be from causes such as a car crash, a tumor and other unrelated medical conditions.

Suzanne Burdick, a researcher for Children's Health Defense, said the organization does not think The People's Voice headline is accurate.

USA TODAY reached out to the social media user who shared the claim, The People’s Voice and the study’s lead author for comments but did not immediately receive responses.

Our fact-check sources:

• Dr. Paul Offit, Aug. 28, Phone interview with USA TODAY

• Suzanne Burdick, Aug. 30, Email exchange with USA TODAY

• Dr. William Petri, Aug. 28, Email exchange with USA TODAY

• Pediatric Infectious Diseases, July 30, Delayed Induction of Noninflammatory SARS-CoV-2 Spike-Specific IgG4 Antibodies Detected 1 Year After BNT162b2 Vaccination in Children

• Nature Reviews Immunology, April 24, 2023, The unique properties of IgG4 and its roles in health and disease

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: IgG4 antibodies after COVID-19 shot not tied to ailments | Fact check