The Two-Step Answer to Protecting Your Nerves, Heart, and Brain
Who knew a rash could sound so romantic?
Scientists have described it as "dew drops on rose petals"... specifically, the blisters in chickenpox.
Unless you got the jab when the vaccine came out in 1995, you likely experienced a feeling of general ickiness while sporting those characteristic red spots with fluid-filled blisters.
Your mom would yell at you to stop scratching the blisters but, hey, at least they got you out of school for a week or two.
It's estimated that more than 99% of Americans born before 1980 went through this near-universal childhood rite of passage.
While the scabs from those rose-petal dew drops are long gone, that isn't the case for the viral culprit...
Some of the varicella-zoster virus lies dormant in the nerves along your spinal column and or face.
But in some folks, that viral sleeper cell might awaken later in life.
Once that happens, the virus terrorizes your nerve endings, leaving a trail of burning pain as it makes its way down the nerve.
Upon reaching the skin, it manifests as excruciating blisters and redness on one side of the body.
And this terrible reawakening is an infection called shingles.
Shingles usually presents in a band along the torso, but it can occur anywhere...
I saw a number of shingles patients in my ophthalmology practice. That's because about 20% of shingles cases develop in the eye and can lead to blindness.
So today, I'm going to explain who is at risk of getting shingles, how to prevent this excruciating illness, and why you should consider the shingles vaccine.
Who Gets Shingles?
It's known as one of the most painful illnesses anyone can experience. And I agree. Because I've had firsthand experience when I came down with it years ago.
And unfortunately, a third of us will experience that burning, stabbing pain at some point in our lives. Each year, around 1 million Americans get shingles... to the tune of 1 out of every 3 Americans.
Worse, most people think shingles is a "one and done" deal where you can't catch it twice.
Sorry, but no... You still have a 6% risk of recurrence if you're 50 or older and 4.5% if you're younger.
And the older you are, the more likely you are to develop shingles. Roughly half of folks aged 85 and up will get it.
That elevated risk also applies if you have a compromised immune system. (For instance, if you have rheumatoid arthritis or other autoimmune diseases, you're more at risk of getting shingles.) The same goes for folks on immunosuppressant drugs and cancer patients going through chemotherapy or radiation.
And one of the biggest triggers that can hit anyone at any time? Stress.
Likewise, injury or even some surgeries may put enough stress on your system to trigger shingles.
Unfortunately, there's no cure – you'll just have to manage the symptoms until they improve, which usually takes about two to four weeks. Still, see your doctor immediately if you do develop shingles. He may put you on antiviral medications to help reduce your risk of developing long-term pain from shingles.
Even after those weeks, you can still end up with persistent nerve pain that lasts for months or years.
How to Prevent Shingles
Your chances of getting shingles increase as you age. So keeping your immune system healthy by eating plenty of antioxidant-rich foods and staying active are great ways to remain healthy.
And, of course, there's the vaccine...
The Shingrix vaccine, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2017, contains an inactivated form of the virus. It's essentially a "dead" virus. Your body reacts to the dead virus, mounts a less-severe reaction, and creates antibodies. In rare cases, folks can have a more serious reaction, like developing blisters (something a reader shared with us some time ago).
In a five-and-a-half-year study of more than 38,500 adults across 22 sites in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs system, most folks reported only mild side effects: redness, swelling, pain, and irritation at the site of injection. Otherwise, this vaccine appears to be quite safe, and it reduces the pain and occurrence of the disease by at least 50%.
And while a few participants also developed pneumonia and atrial fibrillation after taking the shingles vaccine, around the same number of folks experienced these conditions after taking a placebo.
We recommend talking to your doctor to determine if the vaccine is the right call for you. But in general, it's recommended that folks over the age of 50 get the jabs. I say "jabs" because you do need two shots to be fully protected (the second within two to six months of your first shot).
The full protection of the vaccine usually lasts about five to seven years. After that, the effectiveness wears off as you age. If you had your vaccine five or more years ago, talk to your doctor about whether or not you should get a second one.
Two Big Reasons Why You Should Get the Shingles Vaccine
The two big reasons are your heart and your brain.
We've known for years that shingles is an inflammatory disease... A 2015 study showed that the inflammation from a shingles outbreak affects the entire body. Researchers found that extra inflammation strains the cardiovascular system so much that a person with shingles will see their risk of stroke and heart attack double in the six months after the outbreak.
And another study found that shingles sufferers have a 38% higher risk of having a stroke for the first time and a 25% higher risk of developing coronary heart disease, compared with those who have never had shingles. And this cardiovascular-event risk stays elevated for even as long as 12 years.
Aside from the inflammation damaging your cardiovascular system, it can also damage neurons in your brain. That neuroinflammation happens to be a key culprit behind developing dementia. In fact, a recent study found that having shingles was linked to a 20% higher risk of cognitive decline.
Of course, as with other vaccines, there are small risks involved. Some common side effects include pain or swelling at the injection site, muscle pain, fatigue, and a fever. More rare issues include pneumonia, brain inflammation, and hearing or vision issues. But if you want to avoid hellish pain in your nerve endings and blistering rashes while cutting your risk of heart disease, stroke, and dementia, talk to your doctor about getting the vaccine.
What We're Reading...
- Something different: How Warren Buffett's son spent his inheritance.
Here's to our health, wealth, and a great retirement,
Dr. David Eifrig and the Health & Wealth Bulletin Research Team
May 8, 2025