Protect your retirement funds from inflation If you've already built your nest egg nearly to your target size and now just want to get to retirement with your assets intact, the Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities ETF (NASDAQ: VTIP) might be what you need. There are funds that follow all the major indexes, and others that cover specific industries and investing styles, so you can easily build a diverse portfolio using them. In other words, it's a feast-or-famine asset that could deliver solid returns when market sentiment shifts back to favoring growth stocks.