Hi and welcome to COVID Quickly, a scientific American podcast series.

This is your fast track update on the COVID pandemic.

We bring you up to speed on the science behind the most urgent questions about the virus

and the disease.

We demystify the research and help you understand what it really means.

I'm Tony Lewis.

I'm Josh Fishman.

And we're scientific Americans, senior health editors.

Today we're going to talk about kids vaccines, the low risks and the considerable benefits.

And why the shots protect people better than previous COVID infections do.

The big news this week is that the FDA and the CDC have made COVID vaccines available

to kids aged five through 11.

How are parents reacting and what do we know about the vaccine safety in this age group,

Tonya?

Well, Josh, many parents are breathing a collective sigh of relief that they can now protect

their young ones from COVID.

They're also thrilled that their kids can get back to doing activities that they had to

give up during the pandemic, like seeing their grandparents or playing with friends.

But other parents are reluctant to get their kids vaccinated or still on the fence.

Here's what we do know.

While COVID is generally milder in children, more than a million kids were infected with

the virus in September alone and 41 died according to the CDC.

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