There’s another health perk to getting a COVID vaccine — and it takes just one dose

There’s another health benefit to getting vaccinated against COVID-19 — and it takes effect after a single dose.

People who received the first dose of any coronavirus vaccine between December 2020 and March 2021 were less prone to developing mild or severe depression than those who had not been vaccinated, according to a new study published Wednesday in the journal PLoS One.

Researchers surveyed 8,003 adults and asked questions about their vaccine and mental health status during the pandemic.

Although study authors can’t pinpoint exactly why the increase in happiness levels, there may be a few key reasons.

Those who get vaccinated may be less stressed about getting sick from the coronavirus, researchers said. They may also be more social or try new work opportunities.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has affected several aspects of people’s lives, including their employment and finances, health risks and opportunities to socialize, all of which can affect mental health,” study authors said.

About 4 in 10 American adults, for example, struggled with mental health or substance abuse in the summer of 2020 — up from about 1 in 10 adults before COVID-19 hit, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

At the height of the pandemic, “mental health distress rose sharply” and began to recover partially until peaking again in April and returning to a “level comparable to that of early March” five months later, according to the study.

Economic improvement, including unemployment insurance and stimulus checks, may have played a role in the “recovery of mental health” since April of last year, researchers said.

Nonetheless, the findings suggest that getting vaccinated isn’t a remedy to curing Americans of mental health stressors but rather a “short-term direct effect of getting a first vaccine dose.”

The health benefits, however, may still extend to those who did not get vaccinated, researchers said. Widespread vaccination may help everyone feel less anxious about getting sick or dying, and benefit from social interactions.

This story was originally published September 9, 2021 at 5:59 PM.

Karina Mazhukhina

McClatchy DC

Karina Mazhukhina is a McClatchy Real-Time News Reporter. She graduated from the University of Washington and was previously a digital journalist for KOMO News, an ABC-TV affiliate in Seattle.