What was claimed
Covid-19 vaccines can change your DNA.
Our verdict
This is not true. mRNA vaccines do not alter DNA.
Facebook video on unvaccinated people makes incorrect claims about DNA
31 January 2022
A video of a far-right pastor comparing the unvaccinated to the Biblical prophet Noah and his family has been viewed over 100,000 times on Facebook.
The clip falsely claims that Covid-19 vaccines alter a person’s DNA.
Rick Wiles who founded the website TruNews states in the video: “The only pure humans, when I say pure, I’m talking about humanity, DNA as made originally by God, unaltered by man’s science. The only pure humans remaining on the earth right now are the unvaccinated.
“If you have been vaccinated, you have allowed these new nimrods to change your DNA.”
Claims that the vaccines are capable of manipulating a person’s DNA have persisted throughout the pandemic, and we have fact checked them many times before.
The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are mRNA vaccines, which work by introducing an mRNA sequence (the molecule which tells cells what to build) to the body. This mRNA sequence codes for a disease-specific antigen (a substance which induces the immune system to produce antibodies). Once this antigen is replicated in the body, it is recognised by the immune system and prepares it to tackle the virus itself.
This introduction of mRNA into human cells does not change the DNA of the human cells and if these cells replicate, the mRNA would not be incorporated into the new cells’ genetic information.
Photo courtesy of Braňo, via Unsplash.
This article is part of our work fact checking potentially false pictures, videos and stories on Facebook. You can read more about this—and find out how to report Facebook content—here. For the purposes of that scheme, we’ve rated this claim as false because the Covid-19 vaccines do not change your DNA.