内容摘要：Tuesday’s debate came on the same day that the House committee heard testimony on separate legislation that would allow

Tuesday’s debate came on the same day that the House committee heard testimony on separate legislation that would allow

Adults who get recommended vaccines tend to have other brain-healthy habits including exercising and a good diet, which made it hard to prove an extra benefit.Stanford’s Geldsetzer took advantage of “a natural experiment” in Wales, which opened shingles vaccinations with an age limit: anyone 80 or older on Sept. 1, 2013, was ineligible but those still 79 could squeeze in. Comparing seniors who just met or just missed that cutoff would mimic a research study that randomly assigned otherwise similar people to be vaccinated or not.

Geldsetzer’s team analyzed more than 280,000 medical records and found evidence that vaccination did offer some protection against dementia. At the time, people received a first-generation vaccine called Zostavax.An important next step is testing whether today’s vaccine, Shingrix, also offers dementia protection, Nagel said. Another research group recently reported some evidence that it does. Vaccine manufacturer GSK last month announced a collaboration with UK health officials to track seniors’ cognitive health as they get vaccinated.Geldsetzer also hopes to further study that earlier shot to see if the type of vaccine might make a difference.

Shingrix is a onetime vaccination, given in two doses a few months apart. The CDC recommends it starting at age 50 for most people but also for younger adults with certain immune-weakening conditions – including those who years ago got that first-generation shingles vaccine. Fewer than 40% of eligible Americans have gotten vaccinated.Side effects including injection-site pain and flu-like fever and achiness are common. The CDC cautions if you’re currently fighting another virus such as the flu or COVID-19, to wait on a shingles shot until you’re well.

While there’s no proven prevention for dementia, doctors also recommend other commonsense steps to lower the risk. Stay socially and cognitively active. And control high blood pressure and, for people with diabetes, high blood sugar, both of which are linked to cognitive decline.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.4 cups lightly packed baby arugula (3 ounces)

1 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro1 medium garlic clove, smashed and peeled

2 serrano chilies, stemmed and halved½ cup extra-virgin olive oil