This shot may have an exciting extra benefit.
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| | | | Most of us think of the shingles vaccine only as a protection against a painful rash. New research suggests it may do much more. A study out of the University of Southern California found that vaccinated adults over age 70 showed signs of slower aging, with less inflammation, healthier gene activity, and bodies that were holding up better overall.
This is on top of earlier research that linked the same vaccine to a 20% lower risk of dementia. Can one shot really provide all these benefits? | | | | | | | Let's investigate,
Tim Snaith
Newsletter Editor, Healthline |  | | Written by Tim Snaith
February 4, 2026 • 2 min read | | | | | | | |
| |  | | | | The shingles vaccine may be a powerful anti-aging tool | | Over the past few years, studies have linked the shingles vaccine to a lower risk of dementia, including one published in April 2025 showing a 20% reduction over 7 years. The pattern kept repeating, but nobody could explain why a vaccine designed to prevent a painful rash might protect the brain. | | Researchers at USC have now published the results of their investigation into this phenomenon. Using data from nearly 4,000 adults over 70, they measured 7 aspects of biological aging: | - inflammation
- innate immunity (the body's general defenses against infection)
- adaptive immunity (responses to specific pathogens after exposure or vaccination)
- blood flow
- brain aging
- epigenetic aging (changes in how genes are turned "off" or "on")
- transcriptomic aging (changes in how genes are read by the cells)
| | The vaccinated group showed slower aging across multiple measures: | - significantly lower inflammation
- slower changes in gene activity
- better aging scores overall
| | These benefits held up even after accounting for education, income, smoking, and existing health conditions. Those vaccinated 4 or more years earlier still showed slower biological aging, and the effects appear to be lasting. | 🔥 The inflammation connection
Chronic, low grade inflammation (researchers call it "inflammaging") is one of the most powerful drivers of aging, and contributes to heart disease, frailty, and brain function decline. | | The shingles vaccine may help by preventing reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus, which lies dormant in your nervous system after childhood chickenpox. When it wakes up, it triggers inflammation. Preventing that reactivation may reduce the body's overall inflammatory load and the damage that comes with it. | 🧠 The brain connection
A follow-up to the April 2025 dementia study found that vaccinated individuals were also less likely to die from dementia after diagnosis, suggesting the vaccine may slow disease progression as well as prevent it. | 💉 Worth a shot?
The CDC recommends the shingles vaccine (Shingrix) for adults 50 and older. It's a 2-dose series, with the second shot 2 to 6 months after the first. Common side effects include a sore arm and fatigue for 1 or 2 days. | | We usually think of vaccines as protection against specific illnesses, and the shingles vaccine does that. But emerging research suggests it may also be one of the more accessible tools we have for healthier aging. So, if you're over 50 and haven't had it yet, this could be the news you've been waiting for. | | Over to you: Have you had the shingles vaccination? Email wellnesswire@healthline.com to let us know. | | | | | | | | | | Sponsored by | | | | | | Healthcare from home | | | | | | |  | | LifeMD | With LifeMD, you have quick and easy access to healthcare experts and prescription drugs (many of which are discounted) at your fingertips. The medications LifeMD offers include GLP-1 agonists, which may support healthy weight management.
There's no need to schedule an in-person appointment — you can do it all online — or show proof of insurance to get GLP-1 medications prescribed and rushed to you. Take LifeMD's quiz below to see whether this treatment option is right for you. | | | Every product we recommend has gone through either Healthline's or Optum Now's vetting processes. If you buy through links on this page, we may receive a small commission or other tangible benefit. Healthline has sole editorial control over this newsletter. Potential uses for the products listed here are not health claims made by the manufacturers. Healthline and Optum Now are owned by RVO Health. | | | | | | | | | | | |   | | | | | | | | Until next time, |  | Take care of yourself, and we'll see
you again soon! | | |  | | |  | | This edition was powered by | | the new view from my desk. | | | | | | | | View in browser
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