A shingles vaccine may do more than prevent a painful rash. New research from the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology suggests it could also be associated with slower biological aging in older adults.
Scientists analyzed information from the nationally representative U.S. Health and Retirement Study, focusing on more than 3,800 adults who were age 70 and older in 2016. After accounting for differences in health status and demographic factors, those who had received the shingles vaccine showed slower overall biological aging compared to participants who were not vaccinated.
What Is Shingles and Who Is at Risk
Shingles, also known as herpes zoster, is a painful rash with blisters that develops when the virus that causes chickenpox, varicella zoster, becomes active again later in life. Anyone who has had chickenpox carries the virus and can develop shingles. Although it can affect younger adults, the risk rises significantly after age 50 and is higher in immunocompromized individuals. Vaccination, which has typically been recommended for older adults, reduces the likelihood of shingles and lowers the risk of postherpetic neuralgia, or long-term nerve pain that can persist after the rash clears.
Vaccines are designed to prevent infections, but growing evidence suggests they may offer broader health effects. Research Associate Professor of Gerontology Jung Ki Kim, the study’s first author, noted that earlier studies have linked adult vaccines, including shingles and influenza shots, to lower risks of dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases.
“This study adds to emerging evidence that vaccines could play a role in promoting healthy aging by modulating biological systems beyond infection prevention,” she said.
Biological Aging Versus Chronological Age
Biological aging refers to how well the body’s systems are functioning, rather than the number of years a person has lived. Two people who are both 65 years old can have very different biological profiles. One may have organs and systems that resemble those of a younger person, while the other may show signs of accelerated aging.
To better understand these differences, Kim and coauthor Eileen Crimmins, USC University Professor and AARP Professor of Gerontology, evaluated seven markers of biological aging:
- inflammation
- innate immunity (the body’s general defenses against infection)
- adaptive immunity (responses to specific pathogens after exposure or vaccination)
- cardiovascular hemodynamics (blood flow)
- neurodegeneration
- epigenetic aging (changes in how genes are turned “off” or “on”)
- transcriptomic aging (changes in how genes are transcribed into RNA used to create proteins)
They also combined these measurements into an overall biological aging score.
Lower Inflammation and Slower Cellular Aging
On average, vaccinated participants had lower levels of inflammation, slower epigenetic and transcriptomic aging, and better overall biological aging scores than those who were not vaccinated. These findings help clarify how immune health may influence the aging process.
Long-lasting, low-grade inflammation is known to contribute to many conditions associated with aging, including heart disease, frailty, and cognitive decline. Researchers often refer to this persistent inflammation as “inflammaging,” Kim explained.
“By helping to reduce this background inflammation — possibly by preventing reactivation of the virus that causes shingles, the vaccine may play a role in supporting healthier aging,” she said. “While the exact biological mechanisms remain to be understood, the potential for vaccination to reduce inflammation makes it a promising addition to broader strategies aimed at promoting resilience and slowing age-related decline.”
Benefits That May Last for Years
The researchers also examined how long ago participants had received their vaccine. Those who were vaccinated four or more years before providing a blood sample still showed slower epigenetic, transcriptomic and overall biological aging compared to unvaccinated individuals. This suggests the potential effects may persist for several years.
“These findings indicate that shingles vaccination influences key domains linked to the aging process,” Crimmins said. “While further research is needed to replicate and extend these findings, especially using longitudinal and experimental designs, our study adds to a growing body of work suggesting that vaccines may play a role in healthy aging strategies beyond solely preventing acute illness.”
About the Study
The study, “Association between shingles vaccination and slower biological aging: Evidence from a U.S. population-based cohort study,” was published in the Journals of Gerontology, Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences on January 20, 2026. This work was supported by the National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health (P30 AG017265); the Health and Retirement Study is supported by National Institute on Aging (U01AG009740).
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