A four-year study of people over age 65 shows that those who had a flu shot were 40% less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease in that time period. It wasn't necessary to have a flu shot each year to see the effect. A survey of 935,887 flu-vaccinated patients and an equal number of non-vaccinated people returned some pretty remarkable results. In the group that had received flu vaccines, 5.1% had developed Alzheimer's disease within four years. In the non-vaccinated group, 8.5% developed Alzheimer's.
The researchers will not go so far as to say that a flu vaccine directly prevents Alzheimer's, though. Rather, they think it may be that illness such as influenza or pneumonia might alter the immune system in ways that allow Alzheimer's to develop. The flu shot merely prevents those illnesses. They have not discovered the exact mechanism of this effect. However, couldn't there be another explanation? What if people who are on the road to Alzheimer's disease are simply less likely to get a flu shot? More research is called for. -via Damn Interesting
(Image credit: City of Detroit)
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