Foods You Should Eat and Avoid if You Have Herpes
Have you heard about Herpes? It is a very common virus which was affected around two in every three people under 50 years of age. There is no cure for herpes, but some medications can help reduce the severity of the outbreaks. And the other way to prevent getting as many outbreaks by watching your diet. So here in this article, we'll discuss some foods that can make your diet to help prevent herpes outbreaks. Let's check out.
What is herpes?
Herpes is a common virus that super-common infection can stay in your body for life. This virus is caused by two by two different but similar viruses, they are:
- herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)
- herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2)
Both these types can make some sores pop up around your vulva, vagina, cervix, anus, penis, scrotum, butt, inner thighs, lips, mouth, throat, and rarely, your eyes.
Symptoms Of Herpes
The most common symptoms of herpes are sores on your genitals or mouth. But at the same time, there may be no symptoms so that some people may not know they have herpes. Common symptoms are:
- burning when you pee
- itching
- pain around your genitals
- fever
- chills
- headache
- feeling achy and tired.
Foods to Avoid with Herpes
Let's discuss what foods you should avoid preventing herpes outbreaks.
Meal and Snack Choices
If you have herpes then you should avoid the food that contains arginine because by eating foods that are high in arginine, you are essentially feeding the virus. So make sure to avoid the foods that are high in arginine such as:
- Peanuts
- Raisins
- Wheat
- Chocolate
- Oats
- Soy
- Sesame seeds
But you can balance the arginine with the help of Lysine. It is an amino acid that is found in meat and dairy products. This Lysine blocks the arginine and balances out arginine. But certain foods are there, that are high in arginine and low in lysine, such as:
- Orange juice
- Peanut butter
- Cereal
- Oatmeal
- Toast
- Muffins
- Pastries
Limit Sugar Intake
However the immune system helps your body fight off viruses, but sugar works against your body’s immune system. Taking sugar can suppress your white blood cells from killing a virus such as herpes.
Avoid Refined Carbs
It's important to avoid the foods that contain the most refined carbs because the refined carbohydrates suppress your body’s immunity and can lead to herpes outbreaks. Some of the foods that are refined with carbs are:
- White bread
- White pasta
- Processed baked goods
- Sodas with high-fructose corn syrup
Avoid Alcohol and Caffeine
Try to avoid the intake of alcohol and caffeine because they inhibit your immune system.
Foods You Should Eat
There is a lot of delicious food you can eat that is good for your health as well as that won’t spark a herpes outbreak. Some good delicious choices to consider are:
- Fish
- Poultry
- Grass-fed beef
- Dairy products
- Mushrooms
- Garlic
- Eggs
- Beans
- Fruits
- Vegetables
All these are high in the ratio of lysine to arginine so that it can help to keep your outbreaks to a minimum. Having Herpesyl Supplement also helps to control herpes upto a limit.
How to Manage the Herpes Virus?
There is no cure for the herpes virus, but you can manage outbreaks by making changes to your diet and your lifestyle. Let’s check out:
- Try to avoid stress and learn stress-management techniques.
- Consider taking a multivitamin to boost your immune system as well as to reduce the frequency of outbreaks in the future.
- Try to sleep earlier to give your mind and body more time to rest, relax and recover.
- Avoid the use of cigarettes and other smoking products because that can irritate the lips and mouth.
- Avoid consuming alcohol, because that can have negative effects on your immune system and ability to recover from an outbreak.
Diet is a rare factor that is responsible for causing or healing an outbreak. And that doesn't mean that you can treat herpes by making some changes to your diet. The most effective thing you can do is lower your risk of spreading the virus through the use of antiviral herpes medication.