Could vaccines offer protection not only against infectious diseases but also against heart attacks, strokes, or cognitive decline, while simultaneously reducing financial burdens? Evidence increasingly suggests they can. Scientists have found that immunizations targeting influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), pneumococcal disease, shingles, and measles deliver advantages that go well beyond their primary purpose. These include lowering the risk of cardiovascular complications, supporting brain health, enhancing childhood education outcomes, generating economic savings, and potentially priming the immune system to respond more effectively to unfamiliar pathogens.
Respiratory infections such as flu, RSV, and pneumococcal disease affect tens of millions of Americans annually, often leading to severe outcomes in older adults and individuals with preexisting conditions. Nearly half of U.S. adults live with some form of cardiovascular disease, placing them at higher risk for hospitalization or death when infected. According to Dr. Kawsar Talaat, an associate professor in International Health, these infections trigger systemic inflammation, which in turn raises the likelihood of major adverse cardiac events—including myocardial infarction, stroke, or congestive heart failure—during illness or in the weeks and months afterward. She explains that illness increases strain on the heart, raising its oxygen demand and potentially causing ischemia, a condition marked by reduced blood flow that can precipitate a heart attack. One study revealed that approximately 24% of adults over 50 hospitalized with RSV experienced an acute cardiac incident, including nearly 10% without prior heart conditions.
“Preventing the initial infection helps avoid these downstream complications,” Talaat emphasizes. Research cited by Dr. Anna Durbin, also a professor in International Health, shows flu vaccination is linked to lower all-cause mortality, particularly among those aged 65 and older.
Shingles vaccination has also demonstrated wide-ranging benefits. The varicella-zoster virus, responsible for chickenpox, remains dormant in the body and may reactivate later in life due to aging, stress, or weakened immunity, causing shingles. A two-dose vaccine regimen recommended for adults 50 and above—not only prevents shingles and its complications but is also associated with reduced risks of stroke, heart disease, dementia, and premature death. Durbin notes that the mechanism likely mirrors that seen with flu vaccines: by averting a highly inflammatory illness, the vaccine indirectly lowers the chance of cardiovascular incidents. Additionally, multiple studies have observed a connection between shingles reactivation and increased dementia incidence. A 2025 study points to the AS01 adjuvant—a component designed to enhance immune response—as a potential factor in neuroprotection. This ingredient is present in both Shingrix (shingles vaccine) and Arexvy (RSV vaccine), both of which showed correlations with lower dementia rates.
The MMR vaccine, traditionally used to prevent measles, mumps, and rubella, also appears to offer broader immunological advantages. Measles infection causes “immune amnesia,” where the body loses its prior immunity to various pathogens, increasing vulnerability to other infections like pneumonia or diarrhea. “By stopping measles, we’re not just reducing measles-related deaths, but overall mortality,” Talaat explains. Emerging research suggests the MMR shot may promote “trained immunity,” enabling the immune system to respond more efficiently to new threats it hasn’t previously encountered. “It’s as if your body has seen the pathogen before,” Durbin says, “allowing faster clearance of infections.”
Vaccination also supports educational continuity. Children who contract preventable diseases often miss extended school periods, disrupting learning and increasing dropout risks, according to the National Education Association. For low-income families, missing three weeks of instruction can create insurmountable academic setbacks. In contrast, immunized children are more likely to maintain consistent attendance and academic progress.
Financially, vaccines benefit both individuals and society. Over half of American workers are paid hourly, meaning illness—or caring for a sick child—often results in lost wages. Talaat highlights a recent case in South Carolina, where 150 unvaccinated children exposed to measles were required to quarantine for three weeks, necessitating a caregiver’s absence from work. Without remote work options, this could mean three weeks without income. Beyond individual hardship, outbreaks incur substantial societal costs. A 2018–2019 measles outbreak in Washington’s Clark County totaled approximately $3.4 million—nearly $47,000 per confirmed case—factoring in medical care, contact tracing, testing, and lost productivity.
— news from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
— News Original —
The Health and Economic Benefits of Vaccines
What if a vaccine could reduce your chances of heart attack, stroke, or dementia, and even save you money? n nIt turns out: those vaccines already exist. Researchers are learning that vaccines against flu, shingles, RSV, measles, and more have benefits beyond preventing the specific diseases they target. Vaccines provide economic benefits for individuals and communities, improve children’s development and education, help prevent cardiovascular events and cognitive decline, and may even train the immune system to defend against new diseases. n nFlu, RSV, and pneumococcal vaccines are linked to reduced risk of cardiovascular events in older adults n nEvery year, tens of millions of people in the U.S. get sick with infectious respiratory illnesses, including flu, RSV, and pneumococcal disease. n nAdults over 65 and people with chronic conditions are particularly susceptible to severe complications from these illnesses. This includes the nearly half American adults live with some type of cardiovascular disease, who are more likely to experience severe illness that may result in hospitalization or death. n nWhether mild or severe, these illnesses can cause inflammation, explains Kawsar Talaat, MD, an associate professor in International Health. That inflammation increases a person’s likelihood of experiencing a major adverse cardiovascular event—like a heart attack (myocardial infarction), stroke, or episode of congestive heart failure—while they’re sick or in the weeks and even months following. n nIn addition, “when you get sick, there’s more strain on your heart,” Talaat says. “Making [your heart] work harder increases the oxygen demand, which could lead to ischemia [decreased blood flow to parts of the body] and lead to a heart attack.” In fact, one study found that nearly 1 in 4 adults over 50 hospitalized with RSV experienced an acute cardiac event during their hospitalization—including nearly 1 in 10 who did not have an underlying cardiovascular disease. n n“If you prevent the infection from happening, then the downstream effects—the cardiac events, the strokes—don’t happen,” Talaat says. n nOther studies have shown an association between flu vaccination and reduction in all-cause mortality, says Anna Durbin, MD, a professor in International Health. These benefits have been shown across age groups, but particularly in adults over 65. n nMultiple benefits linked to shingles vaccination n nWhen someone gets chickenpox, the varicella-zoster virus stays in their body for life. It can then be reactivated—due to age, stress, or a suppressed immune system—causing shingles, or herpes zoster. n nA mounting body of research shows that shingles vaccination—a two-dose regimen for adults 50+ and some immunocompromised younger adults—doesn’t just protect against reactivation of the virus and potential complications from it. It also reduces a person’s risk of heart disease, stroke, dementia, and death. n nThe same indirect mechanism at play with flu and other vaccines is likely at play with the shingles vaccine, says Durbin: By preventing the disease itself, which is highly inflammatory, you prevent the subsequent increased risk for adverse cardiovascular events. n nMultiple studies indicate an association between shingles reactivation and incidence of dementia. Research is ongoing to determine whether the reduced risk of dementia is a result of preventing the virus from recurring, a mechanism in the vaccine itself, or a combination of the two. An April 2025 study suggests that the AS01 adjuvant—an ingredient added to boost the immune response of the vaccine—could play a role in protection against dementia. That study showed associations between both the shingles vaccine Shingrix and the RSV vaccine Arexvy, both of which are AS01 vaccines, and reduced incidence of dementia. n nMMR vaccination helps fight more than measles, mumps, and rubella n nMeasles causes not only uncomfortable symptoms like high fever and rash, and potential severe complications, including pneumonia, encephalitis, brain damage, and death. Measles infection also causes immune amnesia, explains Talaat. “Your immune memory to previous vaccinations, previous infections, [is] gone, so you’re susceptible to them” as if you’ve never encountered them. “You’re more at risk, for example, of dying from diarrhea or pneumonia after being sick with measles,” she says. “By preventing measles cases, you not only prevent the cases and mortality directly due to measles, but all-cause mortality because of the effects the measles virus has on the immune system.” n nFurthermore, initial research into the additional protective benefits of the MMR vaccine suggests it may induce what’s called “trained immunity,” Durbin says—meaning that “it protects against more than just measles, mumps, and rubella.” n n“It trains your immune system to be geared up for new pathogens,” Durbin explains. “So, even though you haven’t seen that pathogen before, your immune system acts like it’s seen it before, and you clear the infection more readily.” n nVaccination helps kids stay on track in school n nWhen kids are sick, they risk missing out on essential classroom time. Vaccine-preventable illnesses “often result in extended absences from school, jeopardizing students’ academic progress and increasing the likelihood of dropping out,” according to the National Education Association. n nFamilies with higher income may have the resources to help kids catch up and avoid any lasting effects, says Talaat. “But for kids from lower income families who are just barely making it in school, losing three weeks’ worth of instruction may put them so far behind that they can’t catch up.” n nVaccination offers financial benefits to individuals and communities n nFor the more than half of all workers in the U.S. who are paid hourly, having to stay home due to illness or to provide care for a sick child often means losing that day’s wages. “If a parent can’t go to work, that hurts the economic potential of the entire family,” Talaat says. She points to recent news as an example: “In South Carolina, 150 unvaccinated kids who have been exposed to measles have now been told to quarantine for three weeks. … Somebody has to stay home with those kids. If you don’t have the luxury of teleworking at home, you might not be getting a paycheck for those three weeks.” n nOutbreaks cost more than the medical care or hospitalization required for individual cases; it also accounts for the resources needed to contain the outbreak through contact tracing and diagnostic testing, and the cost of lost wages and productivity. In 2018–2019, a measles outbreak in Clark County, Washington, carried an estimated societal cost of $3.4 million—about $47,000 per confirmed case—according to economists at the International Vaccine Access Center.