5 Reasons Why Older Americans Should Get the Shingles Vaccine

The risk of getting shingles increases when you turn 50 and continues to increase as your immune system weakens with age. The only way to prevent shingles is to get the shingles vaccine, called Shingrix.

Shingles (herpes zoster) is reactivation of childhood chickenpox that causes an agonizing rash and can lead to serious health complications. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that healthy people 50 years and older receive two doses of Shingrix 2 to 6 months apart. Learn how the shingles vaccination can protect you.

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  1. Shingles in adults is more painful than many realize.

  Shingles isn’t just any rash. It’s a rash that can feel like it’s stabbing you with a knife from the inside. While chickenpox is itchy, shingles is blistering. Shingles doesn’t come and go quickly, either. It usually lasts 3 to 5 weeks. The rash typically appears 1 to 5 days after infection. It forms blisters that usually burst and scab within 7 to 10 days. They typically don’t clear for 14 to 28 days. Flu-like symptoms may also accompany the rash, including headache, fever, chills, and nausea.
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  2. Shingles in adults can cause serious complications.

  The most common shingles complication is postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). With PHN, nerve damage causes pain to continue after the rash has been treated and cleared up. Nerves mistakenly tell the brain that you’re still in danger, even though the threat is gone. You may develop other neurological issues that affect your hearing or balance. Facial paralysis and brain swelling (encephalitis) can also occur. And if you have shingles around your eyes, they can become infected, potentially damaging your vision.
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  3. Having chickenpox in the past increases your risk of shingles.

  Some people hesitate to get the shingles vaccine because they can’t remember if they’ve had chickenpox. Shingles and chickenpox are caused by the same virus, varicella-zoster. If you’ve had chickenpox, the virus never completely left your system, and it can surface again as shingles. A full 99% of people in the United States born after 1980 have had chickenpox and are at risk of it “coming back” in shingles form. If you’re positive you never had chickenpox, your doctor can give you an immunity test to confirm and may suggest a chickenpox vaccination.
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  4. You can get vaccinated even if you’ve had shingles.

  If you’ve experienced the pain, itch, burning, and blisters of shingles, you’re probably not eager to repeat it. The shingles vaccine can protect you from having to suffer through another bout. There’s also no age limit for getting vaccinated. It’s important to note, however, that you should not get the shingles vaccination if you have shingles currently. Talk with your doctor and plan to get your vaccination after your shingles rash has been treated effectively and cleared completely.
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  5. Certain factors compound shingles risk.

  If you’re 50 or older and you have a weakened immune system, your risk of shingles increases. The immune system can be weakened by autoimmune disorders like rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and medications like corticosteroids if taken long-term. In fact, people with RA are twice as likely to develop shingles as those who aren’t. People taking immunosuppressant medications like biologics, or who have weakened immune systems due to current or past cancer treatment, are also at a higher risk of shingles.