#shingles

WASHINGTON (AP) — A vaccine to fight dementia? It turns out there may already be one – shots that prevent painful shingles also appear to protect aging brains.

Scientists may have produced the strongest evidence yet that the shingles vaccine is linked to reduced dementia risk. Using the health records of more than 280,000 older adults in Wales, researchers found those who received the shingles vaccine were 20 per cent less likely to develop dementia over the next seven years than those who did not receive the vaccine. The findings, published Wednesday in the journal Nature, build on other recent studies that have demonstrated associations between herpes virus infections and an increased risk of developing dementia.

Those who received the shingles vaccine were 3.5 per cent less likely to get dementia overall, and 20 per cent less likely to than those who weren't vaccinated.

ETA: Get your shingles shots regardless. It's a horribly painful disease. My mother lost most of the vision in one eye because of it. But if it helps prevent dementia, even better.