‘Turning 50 Felt Like a Superpower’

• Brooke Shields is speaking out about the importance of preventive health for people over 50.
• Specifically, Shields is working to encourage others to embrace aging and the increased risk of shingles for people over 50.
• About one million people develop shingles in the U.S. each year.
• The best way to prevent shingles is to get vaccinated.

Brooke Shields has been in the spotlight for most of her life. She began modeling at just 11 months old and became a household name at age 12 for her leading role in the 1978 movie Pretty Baby.

However, as a younger person, she struggled with having a widespread platform and seeing the value in being famous.

“[As] I got older, I started to understand the value and visibility of being in the public eye and…if used appropriately, it can be used for good,” she told Healthline.

In addition to acting as president of the Actors’ Equity Association, she is outspoken about post-partum maternal mental health and is an advocate for women’s health.

“[As] a woman of this age who has experienced these things…[advocating] is the only real purpose that I have found to being a public figure,” said Shields.

As Shields lives through her 50s, she embraces preventive health more and more and hopes others will do the same. For people who believe that with age comes less control of your health, she said the antithesis is true; you have more control.

“We’ve gotten this far, and when you really look at what we’ve all gone through health-wise, as women…we’ve earned the position of knowing ourselves actually better than most,” said Shields.

Over the years, she learned to be persistent in asking important questions regarding her health.

“Now, if someone says something to me, I don’t assume it’s the right thing just because I’m in a hospital bed…I know that there is something amiss with me, and it’s my prerogative to be able to ask about it,” she said.

While Shields has not had shingles, two of her close friends, who are over 50 years old, have.

“It was debilitating for each of them in a different way. One had to shut down production for two weeks for something she was working on. Another one…couldn’t perform, the pain was [awful],” she said.

Shingles occur when the varicella-zoster virus (VZV), which causes chickenpox, reactivates in the body after having chickenpox.

While anyone who has had chickenpox can develop shingles regardless of age, Steven Furr, MD, president of the American Academy of Family Physicians, said most cases occur in people 50 or older because 99% of adults born before 1980 had chickenpox, and therefore, they have the virus that causes shingles inside their bodies. Even though not all of them will develop shingles, Furr said the risk of getting it increases with age.

“If you’ve had the chickenpox vaccine, you are less likely to get chickenpox. Therefore, you’re less likely to later develop shingles,” Furr told Healthline. “People with weakened immune systems or over 50 are more likely to get shingles, including if you have cancer, HIV or AIDS or take medicines that affect the immune system.”

Because shingles is a viral infection that affects the skin, it can present as a skin condition, said Adam Friedman, MD, professor of dermatology at George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Washington, DC.

“The herpes zoster virus migrates from a nerve root along sensor nerves to ultimately enter and insert itself into skin cells,” he told Healthline. “The immune system is not a fan of this and attacks both the nerves (why it’s so painful) and skin, killing said skin cells and causing blisters to form.”

Because the virus travels along the sensory nerves, the skin eruption typically follows imaginary lines called dermatomes, which represent the path of said nerves, said Friedman.

High risk areas for outbreaks include the forehead toward the eye, which may require an eye doctor’s help. If there is a rash inside the ear, an ear, nose, and throat (ENT) doctor is often required, he added.

“Also, when patients have lowered immune systems due to any number of reasons (HIV, medication, cancer), shingles can go against the textbook description and appear along multiple dermatomes (aka disseminated), and look quite different than standard cases,” said Friedman.

Because an active rash is contagious, he said to make sure to keep the rash covered and away from high risk populations like babies and older adults.

“Shingles is often treated with an antiviral medicine. These medicines can reduce the severity and duration of shingles symptoms,” said Furr. “However, I cannot stress enough the importance of preventive care.”

The campaign includes videos of women sharing the impact of having shingles and talking about how embracing aging and prioritizing preventive health has helped them.

One of the videos features Shields, who states, “Turning 50 felt like a superpower to me.”

“[I’ve heard] the stories [about] the emotional impact and the pain and the disruption and the missing of life’s moments,” said Shields. “I think we don’t really connect with it as much as we should, and there are very clear, easy steps to take once you really understand your risk and ask about vaccination.”

The best way to prevent shingles is twofold, said Furr.

“First, I tell people in my community to vaccinate children for chickenpox. Remember, you can’t get shingles unless you’ve had chickenpox first,” he said. “I tell older adults to get the shingles vaccine, which is recommended for adults 50 and older. The vaccine can prevent shingles and stop the disease from coming back.”

The vaccine requires two doses and is over 90% effective at preventing shingles and postherpetic neuralgia (nerve pain) in adults 50 years and older with healthy immune systems.

Adults 19 years and older who have weakened immune systems are at higher risk of complications and should also get vaccinated, reports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Shields hopes adults 50 and over take shingles prevention seriously.

“This is an entire era of time to take control of your own health,” she said. “I just hope that the fear is diminished and that anybody over 50 simply asks the questions.”

She said to turn to your doctor or pharmacist if you have questions or concerns about the shingles vaccine.

“They’ll tell you what your risks are, and inevitably, you’ll take your power back for your own health to make decisions for your health positively,” said Shields.