Name: Why flu shots work differently in older adults
Uploaded: 2025-10-31T17:20:51.613Z
Duration: 2 min 46 s
Description: It is flu season and there is some new insight into why vaccines may work less effectively in older adults.

It is flu season and there is some new insight into why vaccines may work less effectively in older adults.

Researchers from the Allen Institute and Benaroya Research Institute have conducted the largest study of its kind to investigate why flu vaccines tend to be less effective in older adults. The study found that, beyond changes in immune cell numbers, the function of the immune system itself changes with age, contributing to reduced vaccine responses.

The study tracked participants over two years, even during the COVID-19 pandemic, and suggests that future vaccines could be tailored to better serve older populations. Despite current limitations, experts emphasize that flu vaccines remain effective and recommend continued vaccination while improvements are developed.

Why flu shots work differently in older adults

We are now in flu season and there's some new insight into why vaccines may work less effectively in older adults and perhaps more importantly what we can do about that. And I want to welcome Dr. Claire Gustafson, lead scientist in this study with the Allen Institute. Thank you so much for joining us. Yeah, it's great to be here. Okay, so let's break down the findings. Why is it that vaccines may be less effective in older adults? Yes, our interesting new finding is that not only do we see number differences in the immune system with age, what we're seeing is they're actually functioning differently and this difference in function actually contributes to reduced vaccine responses as we get older. Okay, so I know this is the largest study of its kind. How was it conducted? Yeah, so this was a large collaborative effort with the Allen Institute and Benaroya Research Institute in Seattle where we actually enrolled people and tracked them over a two-year period of time during COVID which was an incredible feat and so we have to really commend the entire teams for this study and the participants. Absolutely, that's amazing. Now, how do you think the results of this study will impact vaccines for older adults in the future? Yes, so what we really hope is that from the information we've gained in this study, it can actually give insight into how we should modulate vaccines in the future, whether it's through different components in the vaccine or tailoring it a little bit to different populations to make them work better. They already work good, but now we have insight into actually how to make them better in older populations. And that's the brilliance of science, isn't it? You know, I really think that this is an amazing feat, but I know that people are certainly going to be thinking about the short term. Is there anything we can do in the short term and is it still worth getting a vaccine even if you think it might not be as effective as it could be? Yes, so in the short term, get your vaccines. They still work, they're still good, they're still effective, but I think we have a really good potential to make them better, like I was saying, in the future. Now, when that future is, I'm not certain, but with modern-day technologies and how fast science is evolving and incorporating into the clinic nowadays, I'm really hopeful that this will be a shorter turnaround time than in the past. Oh, Dr. Gustafson, congratulations on this study being published and your findings, and thank you so much for joining us here on Good Day Seattle. Thank you.

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