Source of Shingles

Shingles is caused by a virus called Herpes zoster virus (HZV), which also causes chicken pox. Herpes viruses inflict widespread suffering around the world. Nearly everyone will be affected by some type of herpes virus at some time in his or her life. Depending on the individual, some infections will be minimal and some will be drastic, even fatal. And depending on the particular type of herpes virus, the resulting disorder could be oral sores, genital sores, chickenpox, shingles, Kaposi’s sarcoma, and Epstein-Barr syndrome, to name only the most commonly known afflictions caused by this family of viruses.

Herpes viruses can occur without symptoms in nerve ganglia, which are at the bases of nerve cells near the spine or throughout the face. In these locations the viruses are latent and out of reach to the immune system. They remain at this stage until something triggers them to move up the nerve fibers, enter healthy skin cells, and cause sores. Typically, a familiar pain or itching precedes the formation of sores, signifying an oncoming outbreak that will result in the well-known fever blisters. Sores do not always appear, though, especially in shingles infections. Internal blooms of HZV can instead cause unpleasant or even stabbing pains in nerves around the waist or spine.

HZV is trickier than most viruses because it is latent for long periods of time and because it can travel from one cell to another without ever leaving the internal environment of the cell. Both of these properties enable this virus to escape notice by our immune system, at least until they burst out of the cells they have just killed and attract the attention of our antibodies. This is why our immune system is helpful in fighting herpes outbreaks but is incapable of entirely eliminating herpes viruses from our bodies.

Mainstream Medicine

The most common direct treatment for herpes since early 1980s has been the prescription drug Zovirax. Until recently, when you visited most doctors for a problem with herpes, what you got was usually Zovirax and little else. This is somewhat obsolete, because replacements for Zovirax are currently being promoted heavily by the same company that manufactures it (called Glaxo Wellcome at that time). Indeed, the company has taken unprecedented steps in promoting the main replacement, called Valtrex, by advertising on television for viewers to call a toll-free number to qualify for free-trial samples, by taking out full page ads in numerous magazines (also including the free-trial offer), and by arranging for the inclusion of glossy insert ads for college newspapers around the country. In reality, Valtrex is just a modified form of Zovirax that received a new patent when the Zovirax patent ran out.

These drugs are very similar to some of the components of DNA, which is what our genes and the genes of herpes viruses are made of. Because they are similar to, but not identical with such components, they cause normal DNA to become abnormal. The intention is to stop viruses from making new DNA. The side effect is that it also stops our own cells from making DNA. This is how antiviral drugs suppress our immune system, since the demand for new DNA in the rapidly dividing immune-generating cells of our intestinal lining and bone marrow is constant.

The New Shingles Vaccine – Pros and Cons

The shingles vaccine, Zostavax by Merck, has been licensed in the U.S. since May, 2006. Research leading up to its approval showed it to prevent about half of cases of shingles in adults 60 and older. Experiments did not address younger people, even though the incidence of shingles is reaching into earlier age groups more and more.

Zostavax is not approved for people younger than 60, and it is not recommended for those with immune systems weakened by disease or drug treatment, women who are pregnant (after 60?), people who have active untreated tuberculosis, or anyone who has a life-threatening allergic reaction to gelatin or the antiobiotic neomycin.

In addition:

• No one yet knows how long the benefits will last.
  
• No one yet knows about delayed side effects.
  
• Most people, and many doctors, don’t know enough about shingles to decide whether the vaccine might be helpful.
  
• Insurance companies are dragging their feet on covering the expense (typically $300).

Natural Alternatives

Many natural approaches have been used over the years, such as lysine, Melissa oil, and creosote bush. You can find a bewildering array of advice on hundreds of websites, even some touting a cure. (That is an illegal medical claim, by the way, even if it were true.)

The best of the best, in my experience, is an herbal preparation that I did the original research on my laboratory, starting in 1995. The direction for this research was based on a study published that year that showed how certain ingredients extracted from the creosote bush (Larrea tridentata) could inhibit the replication of HIV. This species is a widespread shrub in the three main deserts of the southwestern U.S. and adjacent Mexico. One of my former graduate students, Dr. Robert Sinnott, and I developed a product line for herpes and got a series of U.S. patents on it. A company headquartered in Houston, TX, now licenses the patents and manufactures the product line under the name of LarreaRx.

The clinical results over the past 13 years have been astounding. The most complete story of the plant and its use against herpes was the subject of my book, Treating Herpes Naturally with Larrea Tridentata. Although it is now under revision, I would be glad to send you an electronic copy (pdf file) of it at no charge so you can find out why this plant is so important in helping with shingles and all other kinds of herpes outbreaks. This includes cold sores, genital herpes, and some really nasty types of herpes that I hope you never have to worry about. Just send me an email with your request and I’ll send your copy as soon as I can.

Meanwhile, Doctors Nutrition Center is the only store in the state of Arizona, as far as I know, that carries the LarreaRx products. We have them in the store and we have them on our website (see link above).

Also visit Dr. Clark's Shingles Blog at NaturalShinglesTreatment.com