Protect yourself and those around you

Recently, the issue of vaccine hesitancy has been a hot topic in the news, both locally and internationally. Basically, vaccine hesitancy refers to the fear that Covid-19 vaccines may not be safe – and it is estimated that roughly a quarter of South Africans feel this way. Are you one of them?

It can be difficult to know who or what to believe, in the era of fake news. The truth is that the Covid-19 vaccine is the best way, not only to protect your health, but the health of those nearest and dearest to you.

If you needed your car repaired, you wouldn’t trust an anonymous source on WhatsApp or Facebook for advice – you’d go to a qualified mechanic. Similarly, when it comes to science and medicine, place your trust in the scientists and doctors, and nobody else.

There are hundreds of stories of people with lung problems or other comorbidities who were at high risk to get a serious case of Covid-19, who only survived because they had been vaccinated.

Simply put, if you are fully vaccinated, even if you do get infected, your infection will be much, much milder than it would otherwise have been.

Some people do experience side effects after getting the jab, such as fatigue, a sore arm, or flu-like symptoms. But these are not very serious and only last a day or two. In fact, side effects are a sign that your immune system is reacting, building up and preparing for in case you do get infected, so you could even see them as a good sign.

The quickest way for us all to return to normality is to get vaccinated. So, if you miss going out to restaurants without having to wear a mask, public events, concerts or sports or any other pastime you used to enjoy, remember the following statistic:

• At the time of writing, almost 84 000 South Africans had died from Covid-19.
• Not a single South African has died from getting vaccinated.

Finally, have a look at the graphic below, which was verified by the Western Cape Health Department:

The information in this communication is for information purposes and is not intended to be detailed advice described in the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act. The fund, administrator and trustees cannot be held liable for damage or loss suffered as a result of any action that you take based on the contents of this communication.