A recent study by The Lancet Infectious Diseases held that “hybrid immunity” provides better protection against severe Covid-19.

• The study said that a hybrid immunity offers a “higher magnitude and durability” of protection as compared to infection alone, emphasising the need for vaccination.
• Hybrid immunity is gained from a previous infection plus vaccines, either the primary doses or both primary and booster doses.
• A natural infection after vaccination acts like a booster and offers hybrid immunity.
• This infection provides better protection than vaccines alone because it prepares the body against the entire virus, rather than say just the spike protein.
• Individuals with hybrid immunity may be able to extend the period before booster vaccinations compared to individuals who have never been infected.

Herd immunity is a kind of protection that a population gets when it becomes immune to an infection, be it through previous infections or vaccination, and thus the likelihood of infection for individuals who lack immunity gets reduced.