There's a plot twist in the tale of age-related deteriorations you never saw coming – getting vaccinated for shingles might double as a shot at protecting your marbles too. At least that's what new groovy research born from an unconventional love-child of health records and brain science seems to suggest.

Mind-blown? Well, buckle up!

We're diving deep into a study published in the label-peeling journal, Nature. Wait for it – they found evidence to suggest that getting jabbed with Zostavax, a rather vintage shingles vaccine (that has officially left the U.S. building), potentially gives your chances of dodging dementia a 20% boost. These findings are like a dart in the eye of health stereotypes, suggesting that vaccines could also be making a cameo in your brain health saga.

Backing up a little, shingles isn't a cool indie band, it's a brutally painful rash illness delivered by the invisible ninja, varicella zoster virus (yeah, the same punk that gives you chickenpox). Imagine this virus chilling in your nerve cells like an unwanted roommate that suddenly decides to show itself, turning your life into a rash-filled horror movie.

Nostalgia aside, Zostavax is not the vaccine on the menu anymore, it was shown the exit door in 2020. Its more badass confrére, Shingrix, is safer, more effective, and approved since 2017.

In an intriguing turn of events, this isn't the first time we've spotted shingles vaccine playing footsie with dementia risk. A 2024 Oxford study went gaga over the potent connection between Shingrix and dementia protection, noting the protective potential against dementia seemed to tip more towards women.

Vaccine-fanatics and fitness nerds also have a higher likelihood of leading healthier lives (read: nailing dinner plates with greens and sweating buckets in the gym) which can flex the dementia-beating muscles further.

Inside health records, however, these lifestyle details are mostly missing. So, can we pin dementia risk on lifestyle factors alone, based on this research? No sir.

The seeds of this study were planted around an unusual timeline in Wales, where Zostavax was offered to people turning 79 for a year starting Sep. 1, 2013. After that, the eligibility torch was passed to the next group of 79-year-olds, and so on. Those who had hit 80 by that date never made it to the starting line.

Rounding up the vaccinated and the deprived groups' data, some interesting beans spilled out. After ruling out factors like medication and scary doctor visits, it became clear that the vaccinated group had reduced their dementia diagnosis chances by 20%.

So what's driving this curious connection for shingles vaccine being a sneaky dementia guardian? One theory taps into the varicella-zoster virus' notorious hide-and-seek habit in our nervous systems that might contribute to dementia. Another theory gives vaccines a gold star for a possible neuroprotective effect.

Still not convinced? Remember, every third person in the U.S. is predicted to develop shingles at some point, with the odds increasing as they age. Yet, in 2021, just a third of eligible U.S. adults had received at least one dose of the shingles vaccine – quite the paradox!

In conclusion: if you're 50 or older, strap in and get your two shots of the Shingrix vaccine. It could hold the key to a shingle-free life, with the bonus of potentially keeping dementia at bay, which in the adventurous unfoldings of health research discoveries, isn't too edgy a thought, is it?