Did you know that vaccines may play a role other than preventing infections in your body?
The way some shots train your immune system can also reduce the risk of cancer, stroke or heart attacks and possibly protect against dementia.
New evidence shows that the shingles vaccine is linked to slower aging, with benefits that can last for several years after vaccination.
The findings suggest the vaccine may have “broad” and persistent effects on “aging-related processes,” said the authors, gerontologists Jung Ki Kim and Eileen Crimmins of the University of Southern California.
The researchers found that among more than 3,800 U.S. participants aged 70 or older, those who received the shingles vaccine after age 60 scored better on composite measures of biological aging than those who were not vaccinated.
Vaccinated participants also showed biological markers linked to lower inflammation and slower “molecular and overall biological aging,” the researchers report.
While the study does not provide conclusive evidence that the shingles vaccine leads to healthier aging outcomes, the findings add to several other observational studies linking the vaccine to widespread health benefits later in life, especially for the heart and brain.
“By helping to reduce this background inflammation – possibly by preventing reactivation of the virus that causes shingles – the vaccine may play a role in supporting healthier aging,” Kim explains.
“While the exact biological mechanisms remain to be understood, vaccination’s potential to reduce inflammation makes it a promising addition to broader strategies aimed at promoting resilience and slowing age-related decline,” the expert added.
Shingles, also known as herpes zoster, is caused by a reactivation of the varicella zoster virus that causes chickenpox. Most people are infected in childhood, after which the virus remains dormant in their nervous system.
For the average, healthy person, shingles only poses a threat later in life. Therefore, the two-dose vaccine is generally recommended for people over 60 years of age. About 30 percent of unvaccinated people will develop shingles during their lifetime.
