Can the shingles vaccine stave off dementia?
6/1/202618 min
The benefits of getting a shingles vaccine seem relatively straightforward: It will prevent you from getting shingles, a painful rash caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox. But researchers have found a surprising link between getting the shingles vaccine and a lower risk of developing dementia. And that’s not the only vaccine that seems to have additional benefits. So what’s going on here?
To help explain this research are epidemiologist Pascal Geldsetzer, who studies the association between the shingles vaccine and lower rates of dementia; and physician and epidemiologist Helen Chu, who studies the Flu, RSV and COVID-19 viruses.
Guests:
Dr. Pascal Geldsetzer is an assistant professor of medicine, epidemiology and population health at Stanford University.
Dr. Helen Chu is a professor of epidemiology, allergy and infectious diseases at the University of Washington.
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Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsFlora Lichtman· Host0:00
[upbeat music] Hey, it's Laura Lichtman, and you're listening to Science Friday. The benefits of getting a vaccine seem relatively straightforward. Like, you get the shingles vaccine, it protects you from shingles. But there may be more to the story. For example, researchers have found a surprising link between getting the shingles vaccine and a lower risk of developing dementia, and that's not the only vaccine that seems to boost health in unexpected ways. So what's going on here? Here to get into the details are my guests. Dr. Pascal Geldsetzer is an epidemiologist at Stanford University who's studying the association between the shingles vaccine and lower rates of dementia, and Dr. Helen Chu is a physician and epidemiologist at the University of Washington who studies flu, RSV, and COVID-19. Helen, Pascal, welcome to Science Friday.
Pascal Geldsetzer· Guest0:56
Thank you so much for having me.
Helen Chu· Guest0:58
Yeah, thanks for having us.
Flora Lichtman· Host0:59
Thanks for being here. Helen, start by orienting us. Give me some examples of some of the unintended benefits of vaccines, you know, beyond preventing the specific disease they were designed for.
Helen Chu· Guest1:13
Um, we think of vaccines as preventing the disease that we're vaccinating against, flu or RSV or COVID, but oftentimes these vaccines can have other effects like preventing heart attacks or strokes.