Mix and match COVID vaccine a 'dangerous trend': WHO

New Delhi, July 13: Citing little data, the World Health Organization's chief scientist has advised against people mixing and matching COVID-19 vaccines from different manufacturers.

In a virtual meet, Soumya Swaminathan called the mix and match COVID vaccine a "dangerous trend" since there was little data available about the health impact.

"It's a little bit of a dangerous trend here. We are in a data-free, evidence-free zone as far as mix and match," Soumya was quoted saying by Rueters.

"It will be a chaotic situation in countries if citizens start deciding when and who will be taking a second, a third and a fourth dose," she added.

However, scientists say that receiving two different COVID-19 vaccines may result in a stronger immune response.It's the virus's spike protein that your immune system responds to, so exposure to different portions of the spike protein should mean your body will make an array of corresponding antibodies that can fend off future infection.

Around the world, different pharmaceutical companies have taken different approaches to developing vaccines. Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna created mRNA vaccines. Oxford-AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson went with what are called viral vectors. The Novavax COVID-19 vaccine is protein-based.

So mixing vaccines could mean more than just switching manufacturers - like from Pfizer for dose one to Moderna for dose two. You might be tapping into a different way to stimulate your immune response if you opt for a first dose of AstraZeneca and a second dose of Moderna.

The most obvious benefits of treating various brands and kinds of COVID-19 vaccine as interchangeable are logistical - people can get whatever shot is available without worry.

with PTI inputs