It’s a good thing, for starters.
Herd immunity, or community immunity, is when a large part of the population of an area is immune to a specific disease. If enough people are resistant to the cause of a disease, such as a virus or bacteria, it has nowhere to go.
While not every single individual may be immune, the group as a whole has protection. This is because there are fewer high-risk people overall. The infection rates drop, and the disease peters out.
Herd immunity protects at-risk populations. These include babies and those whose immune systems are weak and can’t get resistance on their own.
Two ways to get it. One by exposure, getting infected and getting over it:
You can develop resistance naturally. When your body is exposed to a virus or bacteria, it makes antibodies to fight off the infection. When you recover, your body keeps these antibodies. Your body will defend against another infection. This is what stopped the Zika virus outbreak in Brazil. Two years after the outbreak began, 63% of the population had had exposure to the virus. Researchers think the community reached the right level for herd immunity.
Or by fooling your body with a shot:
Vaccines can also build resistance. They make your body think a virus or bacteria has infected it. You don’t get sick, but your immune system still makes protective antibodies. The next time your body meets that bacteria or virus, it’s ready to fight it off. This is what stopped polio in the United States.
Hair of the dog that bit you, except it didn’t, hence the helpful deception.
Way at the end of this helpful explanation is a distinctly cautionary note:
With no vaccine to protect against COVID-19 yet, a large number of people would need to catch the virus, get sick, and recover before we can have herd immunity.
Meanwhile . . . (to be continued)
Blithe Spirit 