India, April 8 -- I received my first dose of the shingles vaccine earlier this year, and the side effects weren't subtle. For a few days I suffered through fever, fatigue, and a sore arm in a way that I had not experienced with other recent jabs of flu shots and Covid-19 boosters.

But as I prepare for my second dose next month, I'm buoyed by new research published in Nature which suggests the shingles vaccine might offer meaningful protection from dementia.

The study by Pascal Geldsetzer and his colleagues found that receiving the shingles vaccine reduced the probability of developing dementia by 20% over a seven-year period. In an era when vaccines are often subject to controversy, this finding offers compelling evidence of beneficial...