B-12 Vitamins

Shingles
By Brazos Minshew, TriVita Chief Science Officer

How to avoid it - and relieve pain if you get it

Shingles affects over one million people in North America each year. It is extremely painful. So how does a person get shingles? And more importantly, are there ways of avoiding it?

What causes shingles?
Outbreaks of shingles (rashes or blisters on the skin) are associated with the virus, Varicella zoster. Most people are exposed to this virus when they get the chickenpox. Others contract the virus but have no outbreak or symptoms. This virus usually infects us when we are children; about three million children are infected each year. Once the acute phase of the virus is past, it is thought that the virus remains dormant in the nervous system until it breaks out again as shingles.

The virus is essentially the same in both chickenpox and shingles. But while chickenpox is very contagious, shingles is not. Interestingly, if a person who has never had chickenpox is exposed to the open blisters of someone with shingles, they catch chickenpox, not shingles!

I mentioned that there is a strong association between the virus and the disease. However, this association is far from cause and effect, as many people who test positive for the virus never get chickenpox or shingles. And, only a tiny fraction of the people who have the virus ever get shingles.

So, the pertinent question is, how can I reduce my risk of getting shingles?

Take the Wellness Challenge.

Reducing the risk
Viruses are funny creatures. They behave by rules that are very different from any other life form. In fact, viruses may not even qualify as life forms because they have no cells; they are simple strands of DNA or RNA that penetrate a host cell. Once inside the host, a virus will cause the cell DNA to produce copies of the virus, which is how a virus reproduces.

When a virus enters your body you may not show a single symptom. Not even one! Right now, it is very likely there is a live rhinovirus in your nose because almost everyone has it. Rhinovirus can easily cause a cold, so why do you not have one then? It is because your passive immune system keeps the number of viruses under control, below your bodys epidemic threshold.

If the passive immune system fails, the virus proliferates, but still without causing any symptoms. Only when the virus proliferation reaches the epidemic threshold will your bodys active immune system take over: fever, large-scale mucous secretions, sneezing, and fatigue to force you to sleep (which helps raise the elements of passive immunity again). These actions will reduce the number of live rhinoviruses to pre-epidemic levels and you will peacefully co-exist with your viruses once again.

In plain terms: We are all infected. Just catching the virus, even the Varicella zoster virus, does not produce symptoms. The symptoms only appear when your active immune system is turned on because virus proliferation overwhelmed your passive immune system and exceeded your bodys epidemic threshold.

As long as your passive immune system functions properly you will not have any signs or symptoms of infection even though you may be 100 percent infected.

You can help support your immune system through vigorous application of the Ten Essentials, which address your most basic needs. A rich concentration of nutrients, in a nurturing environment, makes it less likely that you bodys immune systems will be overwhelmed by a virus.

Take the Wellness Challenge.

What to do
The best way to build a healthy foundation to help reduce risk is to take basic nutrients every day. Good examples of the most important anti-virus supplements include:

A multiple vitamin/mineral supplement
Vitamin C to ignite anti-virus T-cells in the immune system
OmegaPrime essential fatty acids to enable those T-cells to determine which organisms to get rid of and which to keep
Vitamin B-12 to keep the nerves healthy. Healthy nerves are less likely to allow the Varicella zoster virus to erupt into shingles.

If you have had shingles in the past and you are now dealing with the aftermath (called post-herpetic neuralgia), there are steps you can take to minimize the discomfort:

Make sure that you get all the nutrients you need by following the program detailed above.
Enzymes like bromelain and those found in ginger can help reduce the pain.
The amino acid l-Phenylalanine and green tea (both found in Energy Now!) can help reduce the throbbing, stabbing pain associated with shingles.

Most importantly, remember that we need nutrients and nurturing every day to stay healthy. Infections are reminders from our bodies that we are not living in balance with our environment. Take yourself out of the pool of susceptibility by caring for your health every day.

Take Control of Your Health

Reduce stress, a known trigger for shingles
Maintain a balanced immune system
Sleep 7 and a half to 9 hours every night
Enjoy healthy sunshine
Eat a colorful diet
Enjoy activity for 30 minutes most days of the week
Take your foundation nutrients (found in the Healthy Foundation Pack)
Add Energy Now! as needed

Take the Wellness Challenge.

Other health related articles.

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Posted by
Terry L. Allison, Sr., #13134349 1 Star
Independent TriVita Affiliate Member
Skype: allisonmarketinggroup
Phone: 859-858-9246
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