The shingles vaccine may slow biological aging and reduce inflammation in the elderly.[1] A study by the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology analyzed data from the American Health and Retirement Study with more than 3,800 participants age 70 and older in 2016.[1] Vaccinated participants showed slower biological aging compared to unvaccinated participants.[1][2] The researchers measured seven aspects of aging: inflammation, innate immunity, adaptive immunity, cardiovascular hemodynamics, neurodegeneration, epigenetic aging, and transcriptomic aging.[1] They found lower levels of chronic inflammation and slower changes in gene activity associated with aging.[1][2] The vaccinated had a more favorable overall biological age score, which corresponded to a difference of several months to years.[2] The study was published on January 20, 2026 in The Journals of Gerontology, Series A.[1]