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Shingles
Overview:
Shingles is an extremely painful viral condition that affects the nerve endings in the skin. It can affect people of any age, however is most common in those over 50.
Signs and Symptoms:
* Painful rash with reddened skin and blisters that follow the path of a nerve
* 3-4 days of slight fever, chills, upset stomach and body aches may precede the outbreak of the blisters
* Painful skin sensations described as burning, tingling, itching, or prickling are then followed by the development of an inflamed red rash which is very sensitive to touch; the pain remains and may be continuous or intermittent
* The blisters, rash and tenderness usually occur on only one side of your face or body
* May be accompanied by numbness, headache, fever, depression
* After 7-14 days, the blisters form scabs and drop off, although more serious cases may last longer and pain can persist for months or even years in rare cases
Causes and Organs Affected:
Shingles is a second eruption of the varicella-zoster virus — the same virus that causes chickenpox.
Varicella-zoster is part of a group of viruses called herpes viruses, which includes the viruses that cause cold sores and genital herpes. Many of these viruses can lie hidden in your nervous system after an initial infection and remain inactive for years before causing another infection.
Risk Factor:
Anyone who's had chickenpox has the potential of developing shingles. However, it's most common in older adults: More than half the shingles cases occur in adults over 60.
In addition, people with weakened immune systems from HIV/AIDS, those who are receiving medical treatments, such as steroids, radiation and chemotherapy, or those who have a history of bone or lymphatic cancer are more likely to develop shingles. Most people develop shingles only once, but recurrences in other areas are possible.
Treatment:
To avoid further infection, avoid itching or scratching the blisters, but be sure to maintain good hygiene practices and wash them gently every day.
Get plenty of rest and avoid stress, which is weakening to your immune system.
Other Information:
Varying the ratio of certain amino acids in the diet is beneficial. A diet high in L-lysine and low in L-arginine is recommended. To achieve this you need to avoid foods such as chocolate, cereal grains, nuts, and seeds which are rich in L-arginine, and at the same time increase foods, high in the amino acid L-lysine, such as vegetables, legumes, fish, turkey and chicken.
Some people find that a short period (10-15 minutes) of sunlight daily can help to heal the blisters.