Are there long-term side effects of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in children?

• The history of vaccines shows that delayed effects after vaccination can happen. But when they do, these effects tend to happen within six weeks of receiving a vaccine. This is why regulators in Canada and many other countries require at least eight weeks of safety data before approving a vaccine. The vaccines have now been in use for months, with over 2.7 billion doses given worldwide.
   
• This is not new vaccine technology. The mRNA vaccines have been in development for many years and have been studied before for flu, Zika, rabies, and cytomegalovirus (CMV). In addition, cancer research has used mRNA to trigger the immune system to target specific cancer cells. Years of studying mRNA vaccines has shown no long-term side effects.
   
• Canada’s vaccine safety system has proven time and again that the data necessary to get through the approval process is sufficient to prove safety, even for the long term. The end data and safety tests for the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines met the same standards as other vaccines that have been approved in Canada. 

Hear from people in B.C.:

I feel very lucky to have been able to fully vaccinate my kids (8 and 12) against COVID. They had basically no side effects at all from the vaccine… and they are still COVID-free, in February 2022.

There is such peace of mind in knowing I’ve kept them as safe as they can be.

— Jessica Langer, PhD (@DrJessicaLanger) February 3, 2022