Specimens to be tested for COVID-19 are seen at a lab in Surrey, B.C., on Thursday, March 26, 2020. Claims that a 'hydrogel-like substance' can be seen in the blood of someone who has taken one of the COVID-19 vaccines are false. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Specimens to be tested for COVID-19 are seen at a lab in Surrey, B.C., on Thursday, March 26, 2020. Claims that a 'hydrogel-like substance' can be seen in the blood of someone who has taken one of the COVID-19 vaccines are false. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Health Canada says the benefits of COVID-19 vaccines continue to outweigh the risks of the disease. But some people are still wary of the shot and have claimed it can create a "hydrogel-like substance" in the blood. This is false because the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines do not have hydrogel in them, nor is there evidence of this type of adverse affect from taking the vaccine.
A user on X, formerly known as Twitter, claimed a hydrogel-like substance was in the blood of a nurse who claims to have been injured by a COVID-19 vaccine.
The claim was first made in a on X from Matthew Rife and is being used to push people to his company's electromedicine machine. Rife's post, which has been viewed 2.6 million times, says he personally tested the woman's blood. He shared a video of the blood sample, saying, "there’s tons of hydrogel in it."
Rating: False
Rife does not have a medical or research background, according to his biography on his company website.
Users added community notes, X's crowdsourced fact-checking program, to the posts, debunking the claim by pointing out the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna mRNA vaccines do not use hydrogels as a component.
This is addressed in a post by the Australian Government's Department of Health and Aged Care.
"Some of the mRNA vaccines being developed include the use of a material called a hydrogel, which might help disperse the vaccine slowly into our cells," the on its website while debunking another COVID-19 vaccine claim, which said the vaccines help people connect to the internet.
"The Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines do not use hydrogels as a component."
The term hydrogel covers a variety of substances, both synthetic and natural. Some examples of everyday products that use hydrogels include contact lenses, hand sanitizers, bandages and gelatin used in food preparation.
The "hydrogel-like substance" that is being claimed is in fact air bubbles that have appeared from improper preparation of the slides, which can be a common problem when preparing microscope slides, as Dr. Anne Marie Helmenstine laid out in this .
This is supported by Dr. Dennis Kendel, the former CEO of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan.
Kendel, who reviewed the video, told ¹ú²úÓÕ»ó¸£Àû the bubbles are "just a flaw in the slide preparation process."
No evidence of hydrogel-like substance found
Health Canada keeps a public record of all symptoms and adverse side-effects from COVID-19 vaccines that are approved, including from and .
The detailed report "hydrogel-like substance" in the blood as an effect or symptom from taking a COVID-19 vaccine.
Sources
Claim can be found on Twitter () and (, )
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