An article in the October 2023 edition of the American Association of Retired Persons Bulletin reports recent research that suggests that receiving routine and common vaccinations can lower the risk of dementia. Several recent studies suggest that a history of vaccination can reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s, though none of the studies so far has identified the physiological factors that might cause this benefit.
The largest of these studies is a comparison of two groups of more than 900,000 people each. The groups are medically and demographically similar, but one had received vaccinations and the other had not. This comparison revealed that those who have received at least one flu shot during a four-year period are 40 percent less likely to develop Alzheimer’s, and those who received an annual flu shot had the lowest rate of contracting memory disease. In other words, one might conclude that the more vaccinations you have received, the more likely you are to avoid dementia.
A second study in Wales concluded that vaccination with a shingles vaccine averted one in five new dementia diagnoses within a seven-year period. Whether dementia onset was averted or only postponed is not yet known.
This type of sweeping statistical research into large populations can lead us to hopeful conclusions, but, at best, it should be used to direct our efforts toward additional and more targeted medical research. In other words, such studies should be treated as helpful, but not conclusive. And if we don’t follow up to learn the medical reasons for the results, we have really not made much progress toward real solutions that contribute to our quality of life.
In my experience in conducting many speaking engagements and workshops each year, I note that many people tend to grasp at these snippets of scientific information and convert them to behavioral changes that they hope will bring immediate results.
Here’s an example: A woman whose husband had lived with an Alzheimer’s diagnosis for more than five years had just read that cooking on aluminum could cause dementia. She proudly informed me that she had thrown away all of her aluminum pans and was looking forward to progress in reversing and defeating her husband’s disease. First, the connection between dementia and aluminum exposure is not well established, and even if it were the case, she probably should have stopped using aluminum 40 years ago!
I find this unrealistic belief in immediate results most prevalent in the adoption of certain supplements or changes in diet. Among the population dealing with dementia – meaning seniors – a change in lifestyle after dementia has arrived is not going to slow, reverse, or eliminate the process of the disease. If someone tells you it will, they are trying to sell you something!
To me, the operative word in the term “lifestyle” is not “style;” it is “life.” In other words, if you have not practiced a healthy behavior for a significant portion of your life, a late change is unlikely to make a difference.
No, I am not defending a careless or unhealthy lifestyle. I believe adoption of better habits will have benefits, even if they don’t eliminate or stave off dementia.
And I am not refuting the recent research about the possible benefit of vaccination, though I realize some people will recoil from this idea based on their opposition to vaccination in whole and in principle. Just be aware that recent research has offered us one more possible benefit of vaccination related to America’s most feared disease . . . dementia.
Whether or not we believe in or support the practice of vaccination, I believe we all deserve the best.
Debbie Selsavage is a Certified Trainer and Consultant in the Positive Approach to Care®, and a Certified Dementia Practitioner. Her company, Coping with Dementia LLC, is dedicated to making life better for individuals living with dementia. Contact Debbie at deb@coping.today to learn about free support groups on line.
Until next time remember: “We all deserve the Best”
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