Nearly 3 in 4 Americans aged 50 and older say they would likely or definitely take a vaccine that cut dementia risk in half, according to a USC Schaeffer Center survey of 1,529 adults published September 21 in JAMA Network Open. Only 7% said they would not.
That vaccine does not exist yet. But one shot that already exists, the shingles vaccine, has been linked in recent studies to lower dementia risk. How strong is that link? One large study of adults 65 and older put the drop in dementia risk after the shingles shot at about a third.
Key takeaways
- 72% of adults 50 and older said they would likely or definitely take a low-cost, multi-dose vaccine that halved dementia risk for high-risk people.
- Adults aged 50 to 59 were the most hesitant group (26.0%, about 1 in 4), just ahead of Black adults (25.9%). Women were more hesitant than men (23.0% vs 18.5%).
- The shingles vaccine is the closest real-world option, but its link to lower dementia risk comes from observational research, not proof.
What the study found
Researchers asked adults in the Understanding America Study, a nationally representative internet panel, about a hypothetical vaccine: low cost, several doses, and able to cut dementia risk by half for people at high risk. The multi-dose design matches the dementia vaccine candidates now in development.
The answers:
- 72% would likely or definitely get it.
- 21% were not sure.
- 7% would likely or definitely not.
Interest rose with age. The share who said they would “definitely” get it was 31% among people in their 50s and 35% among those 70 and older.
Women were more hesitant than men (23% vs 19%) and less likely to say “definitely” (29% vs 39%). Black adults had the highest hesitancy of any racial or ethnic group, at 26%, and were nearly half as likely as white adults to say they would definitely get the vaccine (20% vs 36%).
“Older adults are highly interested in receiving a preventive dementia vaccine, while relatively few are opposed,” lead author Felipe Montano-Campos, a postdoctoral researcher at USC Schaeffer, said in a news release.
Dr. Kumar’s take
This survey measures what people say about a vaccine that is not real. Saying yes to a hypothetical costs nothing. The more useful question is what people do with the shot that already has a dementia signal attached to it.
That shot is the shingles vaccine. Recent studies linking shingles vaccination to lower dementia risk have increased public and scientific interest in it. Other vaccines, including RSV, flu, and pneumonia shots, have also been linked to lower dementia risk. The high-dose flu shot has its own Alzheimer’s data worth knowing about.
These links are suggestive, not proven. Most of the evidence compares people who chose to get vaccinated with people who did not. People who get vaccines tend to see doctors more, exercise more, and manage other health problems better, and all of that lowers dementia risk too. Researchers work hard to adjust for this, but no statistical method fully removes it.
The hesitancy pattern matters most. Women appear to get more dementia protection from the shingles vaccine than men, yet they were the more hesitant group. Black adults were the most hesitant racial or ethnic group. As Montano-Campos put it, efforts may be needed “to address hesitancy among some groups, including those at higher risk for dementia.” A dementia vaccine that the highest-risk people skip would leave the biggest gap exactly where it counts.
What it means for you
A dementia vaccine does not exist yet. Nothing in this survey changes your care today.
What it does license is a conversation. The shingles vaccine prevents shingles first. Any dementia benefit is a possible bonus, not a promise, and your doctor can weigh your history, prior doses, and other vaccines you may need.
Vaccines are one lever. Even light exercise tracks with lower dementia risk in older adults, and it needs no appointment.