Recently I’ve had a lot of questions from people about whether to get the shingles vaccine. Whether to vaccinate yourself is a personal decision and should be a well-informed one. If you understand the factors that contribute to shingles, you can be better equipped to make that decision.
Shingles is an extremely painful outbreak of the Herpes Zoster virus, which is the same virus that causes chicken pox. Once you have had chicken pox or have gotten the chicken pox vaccine, the virus lives on in your nerve tissue. It doesn’t just blossom into shingles for no reason…. Enough toxic insults to your nerve tissue are what allows it to express. The cases of shingles have been increasing dramatically, and many speculate that this rise correlates to the mass vaccination of children for chicken pox, because the timelines correlate. Personally, I don’t doubt that this is a big factor, but I also believe that the increase of toxic insults to nerve tissues in the last 20 years is playing a role. This includes cell phones, wi-fi, artificial sweeteners being added to many foods, and the increased use of pesticides on lawns, parks, sports fields, etc. All of these irritate your nerves and make you more vulnerable to a shingles outbreak.
Shingles vaccine
There are two different vaccines for shingles. Although they are advertised to prevent shingles, studies have shown that they lose their effectiveness (estimated to be between 51% and 85%) more each year. One of the listed side effects of the vaccine is a “shingles-like rash”. Hmmm. And the vaccine which takes 2 doses to be effective has so much continuing pain as a common side effect that many people say “forget it!” to the second dose.
A better way to prevent shingles
Taking care of your nervous system and immune system is by far the best way to prevent a shingles outbreak. Here are the basics of a healthy nervous system/shingles prevention:
Clear the electromagnetic fields from your bedroom. If you sleep too close to electrical devices, your nervous system can’t fully relax and rejuvenate during sleep. Small emitters like clocks or fans should be 4 feet from your body. Large emitters like TVs, cell phones, cordless phones, laptops, iPads, Kindles, etc, should be 8 feet from your closest body part when you lie in bed. Unplug your wireless router when you go to bed, as well.
Optimize your Vitamin D. Your level should not be “normal”, it should be at least 60, but no more than 80 on your blood test. Ask your doctor to test you and give you the actual number. You can test yourself at DirectLabs.com. The test is called Vitamin D 25-Hydroxy and is very inexpensive.
Optimize your Vitamin B12. You should be at the tip-top of the normal range on a blood test. Most adults can safely take a 1,000 mcg dose per day. Be sure that you get a methylated version of B12.
If you’d like to order Vitamin D and B12 from us, just call the office at 770-817-8028 or check the Wellevate site, which gives a 10% discount.
If you’ve had other viruses, you are more vulnerable to shingles. If you had mono back in the day, get fever blisters or have genital herpes, had the flu, or took a flu shot, I recommend taking L-Lysine as a preventive through the winter season. Adults take 1,000 mg on an empty stomach once a day.
Mental stress also stresses your nerve tissue AND immune system. Exercise, talking with a friend, putting on music you love, and using essential oils all around you help tremendously. Be aware that if the above 4 nerve stressors are present, you WILL be more of a hair-trigger to the mental stressors in your life.
Minimize sugar. Tough as we approach the holidays, I know! If you do cave in and eat sweet treats, never do it on an empty stomach, and take 1,000 mg of Vitamin C afterward to help your body handle it. Dark chocolate is a good thing to keep on hand, as its sugar content is low and just a little tends to be satisfying enough.
Other factors that stress your nerve tissue include exposure to pesticides from treating your yard or home, exposure to mold, exposure to heavy metals (through mercury amalgam fillings, living in an older home with lead in the paint, using aluminum cookware, etc) and getting any vaccine, whether it’s for shingles or something else like the flu or a COVID booster. If any of these factors pertain to you, definitely follow the above preventive measures!
What if you feel shingles coming on?
Immediately increase your L-Lysine to 1,000 mg 3 times a day. Be sure the above recommendations are solidly in place. You can also call us for the homeopathic remedy apo-Infekt (not sold over the counter), which is extremely effective for all viral conditions. If you start to break out, use Manuka honey on the area. Keep the area covered with this honey and it will help fight the virus. I hope this is helpful!
