Herd Immunity

[Belindabelle]

Can any scientists or medics (or anybody) explain the reasoning behind the herd immunity theory that Johnson is supporting? I thought it was known that catching this virus DID NOT make you immune to it.

It is not yet know if exposure to the virus causes immunity.

The thought process behind herd immunity is to help people build up some resistance to its symptoms.

Ultimately, at this stage it's guess work.

Not until the research phase will any of this come clear.

No medical background, just my perspective.

Herd immunity is where sufficient people have immunity to something, so those who are weak or immunosuppressed are protected.

There are a couple of cases where people have apparently caught it twice. More work is needed to establish if the reports are corrects, and if they are how often in happens. It is possible to get just about any viral infection more than once, but for most it's pretty rare, and you can still get herd immunity based on the (vast) majority who do have an enduring response.

Until there is a vaccine, the only way this pandemic can end is when herd immunity is established. Which means a high proportion of the population need tomhave had it and survived.

More people will survive if we spread the peak