(WXYZ) — The annual Thanksgiving feast is just two weeks away and health officials are advising Americans to get a COVID-19 booster now so that they’re protected for the upcoming holiday season.
Your immune response kicks in pretty quickly and your body starts making antibodies not long after getting a COVID-19 booster shot. However, it takes about 10 to 14 days to reach full immunity and maximum protection.
So that’s the main reason why health experts, like myself, are encouraging people to get boosted now before we all sit down and eat turkey with friends and family for the traditional Thanksgiving meal.
Now I know it’s been warn outside, so it is hard to believe that colder weather is coming. But soon, we’ll all be spending a lot more time indoors. And here’s what’s concerning to me: very few Americans have been boosted — less than 10%, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
On top of that discouraging news, roughly 1 in 5 adults say they’ll probably or definitely not get an updated bivalent booster shot. That means there are a lot of people right now with low immunity levels. So, not only could we see a new wave of infections very soon, but more people may end up very sick or hospitalized because they let their immunity wane.
Now, BA.5 is no longer the dominant variant and only makes up 39.2% of infections. The two new variants that are quickly gaining ground are BQ.1.1 and BQ.1; they make up 18.8% and 16.5% of new infections.
But even though these new "scrabble variants" may have found a way to get through our immunity, the good news is that they are all descendants of omicron. And because of that, experts expect the new bivalent omicron booster shot to provide protection, to some degree, against these scrabble variants.
So, in my opinion, now that the holiday season is right around the corner and prevention measures have been dropped, the best way to enjoy the festivities is to protect yourself by getting an updated COVID-19 vaccine. This is especially important for older folks and anyone with underlying health conditions that put them at higher risk of severe illness.
On the next Dr. Nandi Show, it's hard to believe, but even some of the fittest and seemingly healthy people can have an eating disorder. Dr. Partha Nandi explores the signs of symptoms of this debilitating condition and talks with some athletes who say that no one ever knew they had an eating disorder. And we hear important information from Dr. Gail Hall who talks about orthorexia, an eating disorder where people refuse to eat anything but clean, whole food. Tune in this Sunday, Nov. 13 at 4 p.m.
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