As interest grows around COVID-19 booster shots, there is still a lot of uncertainty around getting a third dose. People with weakened immune systems can already get a booster, but the benefit to everyone else is unclear. Deepta Bhattacharya, PhD, a professor of immunobiology at the College of Medicine – Tucson, said that it's clear a booster could be beneficial. A booster, he said, might reduce the chance that a person would get infected and develop symptoms. What's less clear is how much a national booster strategy would help control the spread of the coronavirus. "It just doesn't seem like vaccinated breakthrough infections are the major source of transmission," he said.

The complexity of the body’s immune system makes the impact of a booster shot difficult to assess. Antibody levels from any vaccine or natural infection will decline over time, says Deepta Bhattacharya, PhD, an immunologist at the College of Medicine – Tucson. Yet “the ones that are left tend to be of higher quality, so it takes far fewer of them to protect against disease,” Bhattacharya says, adding that it is difficult to tell exactly how much additional protection a booster shot would provide. This article was originally published in The Wall Street Journal.

Andrew Weil, MD, founder and director of the University of Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine, discusses his early life and career in integrative medicine.

One of the most common reasons Americans cite for not getting vaccinated against COVID-19 is that they're naturally protected by their past infection. Relying on previous infection alone as a means of protecting against COVID-19 is especially risky as coronavirus variants continue to emerge, according to Deepta Bhattacharya, PhD, an immunology professor at the College of Medicine – Tucson. "Antibody levels are really variable after recovering from infections, and those at the lower end of the spectrum might be more susceptible to reinfections. But after a single vaccine in people who have recovered from COVID-19, antibodies skyrocket up, including those that neutralize variants of concern," he said.

Toilet paper-shaped clothes have been used in lieu of toilet paper in the loo, then kept in a hamper or bag after use to be cleaned for later. The clothes are an eco-friendly alternative to the disposable toilet tissue paper. And this practice, that apparently gained attention on several blogs for years, is now a whole industry on online shop etsy.com. "This is just a risky practice overall, said Kelly Reynolds, PhD, MSPH, professor and chair of the community, environment and policy department at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health. "The potential for cross contamination is very high from your bathroom, where they are stored, to your laundry room."

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Some experts differ in their conclusions of whether a third shot is needed for recipients of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines. Deepta Bhattacharya, PhD, an immunologist at the College of Medicine – Tucson said it’s normal for antibody levels to fall over the course of several months. Vaccination triggers a “blood-thirsty competition” among antibodies, he explained, and only the best ones survive ― “the antibodies that stick most tightly to the virus.”

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Michael Grandner, PhD, the director of the Sleep and Health Research Program at the College of Medicine – Tucson, shares his expertise to help people get healthy sleep.