Foods That Knock Shingles Pain Off The Roof
Once I laughed at Woody Allens joke identifying his then wife in a photograph taken in front of their house, as she is the one with the shingles. But when my childhood chickenpox virus came roaring back recently with the excruciating pain of shingles, that story wasnt funny anymore, just cruel.
Nor did I find comfort in knowing I wasnt alone, but merely one of about a million U.S. adults attacked every year by the suddenly awakened Varicella Zoster virus.
Following Hippocrates sage advice, Make food thy medicine, I jumpstarted my self-healing campaign by taking daily doses of the best food-based probiotic supplements I could find, to replenish the friendly flora in my gut and boost my immune system.
kimchi
All the above contain various amounts of essential bacteria, most brimming with billions of lactobacillus varieties, acidophilus and bifidobacterium.
Weather you are in the throes of a shingle attack right now, or merely want to arm yourself with information about self-healing methods, just in case, you probably wont mind if I put on my Kitchen Shrink hat and guide you through some self-healing information you could adapt for your own campaign:
Alcoholic beverages, too, are on the NO list since they interfere with the bodys immune responses as are all caffeine-containing foods and beverages that intensify the already jangling nerves of shingles.
Tzatziki Garlic and Yogurt Dip
1 ½ cups plain Greek or goat yoghurt
2 garlic cloves, crushed
How Will Your Doctor Diagnose Shingles
Diagnosing shingles is relatively easy. You doctor can diagnose the condition based on your symptoms. A rash that appears on one side of the body along with pain in the area of the rash or rashes usually indicates shingles.
Your doctor may decide to confirm your diagnosis through a skin culture. To do this, theyll remove a small piece of skin from one of the rash blisters. Theyll then send it to a lab and use the culture results to determine if its shingles.
Should Someone With Shingles Stay Home From Work Or School
In general, as long as the lesion can be covered, a person with shingles does not need to stay home from work or school.
Health care workers and others working with high-risk individuals should remain home from work until the blisters have scabbed over.
Anyone who cannot keep their blisters covered should stay home from work or school until all blisters have scabbed over.
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How To Avoid Spreading Shingles
The most effective way for people with shingles to prevent the spread of VZV is to:
- Frequently wash hands
- Avoid scratching
Additionally, you should avoid contact with vulnerable people if you develop shingles. Until the rash begins to heal and crust over, you should avoid people at higher risk for VZV complications, including people with compromised immune systems and pregnant people.
A person with shingles is contagious until their rash crusts over.
How Is Shingles Diagnosed And Treated
If you think you might have shingles, talk to your doctor as soon as possible. Its important to see your doctor no later than three days after the rash starts. The doctor will confirm whether you have shingles and can make a treatment plan. Most cases can be diagnosed from a visual examination. If you have a condition that weakens the immune system, your doctor may order a shingles test. Although there is no cure for shingles, early treatment with antiviral medications can help the blisters clear up faster and limit severe pain. Shingles can often be treated at home.
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Avoid These Foods If You Have Shingles
You can reduce shingles pain, skin rash, itching, and blisters by limiting or avoiding consumption of the following foods.
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What Are The Symptoms Of Chickenpox And Shingles
Chickenpox can cause little blisters to form anywhere on the body. A rash of blisters usually first appears on the face and trunk. Then, it tends to spread to the arms and legs.
Larger rashes usually develop with shingles. The rashes are often on one side of the face of body only, but there may be a few locations that are affected. They typically appear as a band or stripe.
You may feel some pain or itchiness in the area of a rash. Pain or itchiness can occur days before the rash appears. The rashes themselves can be itchy and uncomfortable. Some people report a lot of pain with their rashes. Shingles also causes a headache and fever in some people.
The rashes scab over and eventually disappear. Shingles is still contagious as long as the rashes are exposed and not scabbed over. Shingles usually goes away after a week or two.
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What Is Shingles And How Can I Avoid It
Youve likely heard of shingles, but you dont know exactly what it is beyond your impression that its painful, lasts for a while, and is kind of mysterious.
At Sulkowski Family Medicine in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, Dr. Thomas Sulkowski and our expert team have seen many shingles cases over the years, so wed like to fill you in on what the disease is, what causes it, and how you can avoid getting it.
When To Call A Doctor
if you:
- Have a rash or blisters on your face, especially near an eye or on the tip of your nose. This can be a warning of eye problems. Treatment can help prevent permanent eye damage.
- Think you have shingles. Early treatment with antiviral medicines may help reduce pain and prevent complications of shingles, such as disseminated zoster or postherpetic neuralgia .
If you still feel intense pain for more than 1 month after the skin heals, see your doctor to find out if you have PHN. Getting your pain under control right away may prevent nerve damage that may cause pain that lasts for months or years.
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How Long Does Shingles Last
Most cases of shingles last three to five weeks.
- The first sign is often burning or tingling pain sometimes it includes numbness or itching on one side of the body.
- Somewhere between one and five days after the tingling or burning feeling on the skin, a red rash will appear.
- A few days later, the rash will turn into fluid-filled blisters.
- About one week to 10 days after that, the blisters dry up and crust over.
- A couple of weeks later, the scabs clear up.
How Is Shingles Spread
A person with shingles cannot spread shingles to another person, but a person with shingles can spread the virus to a person who is not immune to chickenpox. The shingles virus is spread through direct contact with fluid from the blisters of the rash. A person is infectious while blisters are present until all blisters have scabbed over.
Persons with localized shingles should keep the rash covered, avoid touching the rash, wash their hands often, and avoid contact with individuals who may be at high risk for serious complications from chickenpox, such as infants, pregnant people or individuals with weakened immune systems, until their rash has scabbed over.
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Who Should Not Get Shingrix
You should not get Shingrix if you:
- Have ever had a severe allergic reaction to any component of the vaccine or after a dose of Shingrix.
- Currently have shingles.
- Currently are pregnant. Women who are pregnant should wait to get Shingrix.
If you have a minor illness, such as a cold, you may get Shingrix. But if you have a moderate or severe illness, with or without fever, you should usually wait until you recover before getting the vaccine.
Preventing The Virus Spreading
If you have the shingles rash, do not share towels or flannels, go swimming, or play contact sports. This will help prevent the virus being passed on to someone who has not had chickenpox.
You should also avoid work or school if your rash is weeping and cannot be covered.
Chickenpox can be particularly dangerous for certain groups of people. If you have shingles, avoid:
- women who are pregnant and have not had chickenpox before as they could catch it from you, which may harm their unborn baby
- people who have a weak immune system, such as someone with HIV or AIDS
- babies less than one month old, unless it is your own baby, in which case your baby should have antibodies to protect them from the virus
Once your blisters have dried and scabbed over, you are no longer contagious and will not need to avoid anyone.
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Articles On Shingles Treatment
The virus that causes chickenpox is also what causes shingles. Itâs called varicella zoster. It can lie quietly in your nerves for decades after causing chickenpox but suddenly wake up and become active.
The main symptom of shingles is a painful rash that comes up on one side of your body or face. See your doctor as soon as you can if you think you might have this condition.
Your doctor may want to put you on medications to control your infection and speed up healing, cut inflammation, and ease your pain. They include:
What Foods To Avoid During A Shingles Outbreak
Shingles is a painful condition caused by the herpes zoster virus. Because about 1 million people in the United States get shingles yearly, it’s important to know how to treat the condition and what things to avoid with shingles.
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If you’ve had chickenpox, you’re susceptible to shingles, and your risk increases as you get older. While antiviral drugs may mitigate your symptoms while you have shingles, your diet is important too. Foods to avoid with shingles include low-nutrient foods and those with the amino acid l-arginine.
Tip
Shingles is a painful virus. Avoid foods with the amino acid l-arginine, which can encourage replication of the virus, and low-nutrient foods, which weaken the immune system.
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Types Of Foods To Avoid With Shingles
While they all manifest themselves differently, with somewhat different symptoms, herpes, shingles, and chickenpox all spring from the same varicella-zoster virus. its also known as the herpes zoster virus or the herpes virus.
Shingles manifests itself as a painful rash that may cause blisters, itching, and pain. While there is no known cure for shingles, a shingles vaccine and chickenpox vaccine can help prevent the condition. That said, there are ways to minimize symptoms that you can do on your own, including paying attention to the following list of foods to avoid with shingles.
Avoid Intense Or Irritating Movement
According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, shingles rashes most often appear on the trunk of the body, which includes your:
Shingles rashes can also occur on the:
With that in mind, its best to avoid activities that require you to lay on these areas, like exercising on the floor or a workout bench. For instance, if youre doing gentle yoga, skip any poses that have you lying in the prone or supine position, where your belly or back are touching the floor, respectively.
Additionally, intense cardiovascular exercise like running or cycling may irritate a shingles rash, especially in the early stages.
As you heal, consider switching to lower-intensity workouts like walking until the blisters dry up and crust over. According to the National Institute on Aging , this generally takes around 7 to 10 days after a rash appears.
If possible, hold off on high intensity exercise until the scabs are completely cleared up, which may take 2 to 5 weeks.
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Shingles On Your Face
Shingles usually occurs on one side of your back or chest, but you can also get a rash on one side of your face.
If the rash is close to or in your ear, it can cause an infection that could lead to:
- loss of hearing
- issues with your balance
- weakness in your facial muscles
Shingles inside your mouth can be very painful. It may be difficult to eat and may affect your sense of taste.
A shingles rash on your scalp can cause sensitivity when you comb or brush your hair. Without treatment, shingles on the scalp can lead to permanent bald patches.
What Are The Possible Side Effects Of Shingrix
Studies show that Shingrix is safe. The vaccine helps your body create a strong defense against shingles. As a result, you are likely to have temporary side effects from getting the shots. The side effects might affect your ability to do normal daily activities for 2 to 3 days.
Most people got a sore arm with mild or moderate pain after getting Shingrix, and some also had redness and swelling where they got the shot. Some people felt tired, had muscle pain, a headache, shivering, fever, stomach pain, or nausea. Some people who got Shingrix experienced side effects that prevented them from doing regular activities. Symptoms went away on their own in about 2 to 3 days. Side effects were more common in younger people.
You might have a reaction to the first or second dose of Shingrix, or both doses. If you experience side effects, you may choose to take over-the-counter pain medicine such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen.
Guillain-Barré syndrome , a serious nervous system disorder, has been reported very rarely after Shingrix. There is also a very small increased risk of GBS after having shingles.
If you experience side effects from Shingrix, you should report them to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System . Your doctor might file this report, or you can do it yourself through the VAERS websiteexternal icon, or by calling 1-800-822-7967.
If you have any questions about side effects from Shingrix, talk with your doctor.
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What Are Risk Factors For Shingles
A weakened immune system might wake up the virus. After youâve had chickenpox, youâre more likely to get shingles if you:
- Are 50 or older
- Are under a lot of stress
- Have cancer, HIV, or another disease that lowers your bodyâs defenses
- Have had a serious physical injury
- Take long-term steroids or other medicines that can weaken your immune system
But many people who get shingles donât fit into any of these categories.
Are There Complications Of Shingles
Shingles can have complications that last long after the rash is gone, including:
- Brain inflammation or facial paralysis if it affects certain nerves
- Eye problems and vision loss if your rash was in or around your eye
- Pain that lasts long after the outbreak, called postherpetic neuralgia. It affects up to 1 in 5 people who get shingles.
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When Should I See A Doctor Because Of The Side Effects I Experience From Shingrix
Shingrix causes a strong response in your immune system, so it may produce short-term side effects. These side effects can be uncomfortable, but they are expected and usually go away on their own in 2 or 3 days. You may choose to take over-the-counter pain medicine such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen. Contact your healthcare provider if the symptoms are not improving or if they are getting worse.
In clinical trials, Shingrix was not associated with serious adverse events. In fact, serious side effects from vaccines are extremely rare. For example, for every 1 million doses of a vaccine given, only one or two people might have a severe allergic reaction. Signs of an allergic reaction happen within minutes or hours after vaccination and include hives, swelling of the face and throat, difficulty breathing, a fast heartbeat, dizziness, or weakness. If you experience these or any other life-threatening symptoms, see a doctor right away.
When To Contact A Doctor
Its important to visit your doctor as soon as possible if you suspect you have shingles, especially if youre somebody at an increased risk of developing it.
The American Academy of Dermatology recommends visiting a dermatologist or other healthcare professional within 3 days to prevent long-term complications.
Shingles typically clears up within a few weeks and does not commonly recur. If your symptoms have not lessened within 10 days, contact a doctor for a follow-up and reevaluation.
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