The latest covid vaccine booster is less well known than the ones that came before it, but it’s just as helpful in keeping you healthy.

It's known as a bivalent booster, and Dr. Stephanie Stovall, Chief Clinical Officer for Quality and Safety at Lee Health in Fort Myers, says it will help you stay healthy.

“It has been shown, like other COVID vaccines, to reduce severity of disease and to also reduce deaths in people who are vaccinated,” said Dr. Stovall.

‘Bivalent’ means it contains antigens from two different strains of the disease and therefore increases your body’s chance to fight off whatever you come in contact with.

You need to wait two months after your last covid vaccine–-either the primary series or a booster–-or three months after you’ve recovered from covid, before you can get the bivalent updated booster. The vaccine is available at pharmacies such as CVS and Walgreen’s and at many doctor’s offices.

While you’re there, it’s a good idea to get your flu shot too. Dr. Stovall again:

“Flu season is upon us, and flu vaccines can be given at the same time as the updated COVID booster,” Dr. Stovall adds.

You will need to get them in different arms, so you may have two sore arms afterward. But still, Dr. Stovall says, there is good news.

“People are having fewer side effects and fewer complaints of systemic symptoms with the booster than they did with the primary series. So it seems that over time, the more doses you get, the less likely you are to have fever, chills, aches and pains,” said Dr. Stovall.

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