, Columnist
Fighting Dementia Could Be as Easy as the Shingles Vaccine
Could one simple shot protect against a debilitating condition?
Photographer: Pascal Pochard-Casabianca/AFPvia Getty Images
A relatively mundane middle-aged rite of passage — shingles vaccination — might offer an added benefit: protection against, or even the slowing of the progression of, dementia.
Over the past several years, a growing body of research has suggested that immunization against shingles may reduce the risk of dementia by up to 20%. Now, a new study adds a tantalizing twist: the vaccine may also have a therapeutic effect in those who already have the condition. This wasn’t a modest effect, either — the shot appeared to lower the risk of death associated with dementia over the course of almost a decade by nearly 30%.