- Principles of therapeutic nutrition
- Lysine and arginine: harm and benefits of amino acids
- What can and cannot be eaten during an infection?
- Dietary recommendations
The correct diet for herpes must take into account the type of viral infection, as well as factors that can provoke a relapse of the disease. Products should work to strengthen the immune system and maintain healthy intestinal microflora.
Nutrition for herpes: principles
Research has shown that viral infections can be stopped by foods containing lysine. This amino acid restores damaged tissue, improves human hormonal levels, and promotes the production of antibodies that suppress infection. Lysine is found in meat, fish, milk and eggs.
But a large amount of an amino acid such as arginine can trigger the appearance of herpes. Therefore, it is necessary to refrain from eating raisins, nuts, chocolate, seeds, and gelatin. If a person is predisposed to the appearance of herpes, the risk of the disease increases with an increased content of this amino acid in the body.
Do you follow a diet during an exacerbation of herpes?
Yes, it helps No, I think it’s useless
Both of these amino acids are present in many foods. Therefore, it is important to know the rules of nutrition during the onset of infection. This will reduce the frequency of relapses and shorten periods of exacerbation. Proper nutrition during the disease helps to weaken the manifestations of herpes and the rapid onset of remission, if you follow its basic principles:
- nutrition should be balanced;
- it is necessary to consume proteins, carbohydrates and fats, which help improve immunity;
- Smoked, fried, salty and spicy foods should be excluded from the diet;
- it is necessary to abandon marinades and canned foods;
- avoid eating sweets, chocolate and baked goods;
- You need to consume fermented milk products every day;
- first courses are cooked in vegetable broths;
- It is recommended to eat rye, bran, and whole grain bread.
Important! Dishes are recommended to be boiled, stewed or baked.
Maintaining water balance
It is very important to maintain the body's water balance when signs of a herpes infection appear. It is known that water actively removes the waste products of the virus - toxins.
Drink as much pure water and herbal teas as possible. The following are good for healing tea: chamomile, mint, oregano.
Rosehip decoction will give you strength, saturate the body with vitamins and help remove harmful substances, because has a mild diuretic effect.
Prepare the decoction in a thermos - take 2 tablespoons of dry berries for 1 liter of boiling water. This infusion is drunk 1/3 cup throughout the day.
Prohibited Products
What should you not eat if you have herpes? If you have herpes, you should not take the following foods.
Meat products | Pork, sausages, duck, goose, smoked chicken. |
Fish and seafood | Pink salmon, salmon, trout, caviar, anchovies, crab meat. |
Vegetables and greens | Tomatoes, horseradish, marinades. |
Fruits | Lemons, oranges, grapefruit, persimmons. |
Cereals and porridges | Oatmeal, rice, millet. |
Nuts and dried fruits | Sunflower seeds, pistachios, raisins, sesame seeds, almonds, peanuts, walnuts, cashews, hazelnuts. |
Seasonings and sauces | Mayonnaise, pepper, ketchup, mustard. |
Confectionery | Chocolate, pastries, cakes. |
Bakery products | Baked goods, wheat bread. |
Beverages | Beer, kvass, Fanta, Sprite. |
Fats | Margarine, cooking oil, rendered lard. |
Reviews and results
There are few restrictions in this diet and foods can be prepared in many ways. The diet is healthy and nutritious, and temporary restriction of cereal products does not affect health. The only negative, according to patient reviews, is the limitation of sweets. Women especially have a hard time with the lack of sweets, cakes, and chocolate, and this is the main reason for not following the diet to the end.
- “... In my own experience, I noticed that rashes most often appear after eating grapes, nuts, herring and scrambled eggs, although eggs are allowed. Real, rustic cottage cheese helps most effectively. I don’t trust store-bought ones and buy them at the market. In general, you need to strengthen your immune system (immunal or echinacea, vitamins) and not be nervous. When the stress at work ended and the herpes subsided. I started to harden up, I go to the pool and everything is fine with my health”;
- “... After childbirth, the immune system weakened. 1.5 years have already passed and herpes on the lips does not give me peace. If before it was once a year, now it’s every 2 months. I’m worried about the child (I’m afraid of infecting the baby), so I decided to take care of myself. First of all, I take vitamins and Proteflazid. Then I added L-lysine in capsules. He even has suitable indications: herpes infection, decreased immunity, neuroses and irritability - what I need. Finally, I started sticking to a diet. 7 months have already passed and everything is fine with me. Apparently everything works together!”;
- “... I had rashes on my lips 4-5 times a year, a course of Geviran helped and everything has been fine for 2 years now. But when there was stress at work, and even hypothermia, he jumped out again. I haven’t tried nutrition, it may help, but if you need to quickly recover, then there is no time for experiments. I often apply Acyclovir and it goes away in 3 days. In principle, you can try drinking lysine and eating a lot of cottage cheese and milk - I love them.”
Authorized Products
During herpes, the following foods are allowed to be consumed.
Meat | Chicken, rabbit, turkey, beef, veal, liver, heart. |
Vegetables | Cabbage, eggplant, legumes, potatoes, carrots, cucumbers, peppers, beets, tomatoes, pumpkin. |
Dairy | Kefir, sour cream, yogurt, yogurt. |
Fruits | Apples, peaches, watermelon, pineapples, pears, pomegranates, raspberries, strawberries, currants. |
Cereals | Buckwheat. |
Dried fruits | Prunes, dried apricots. |
Fish and seafood | Cod, carp, sardines, squid, perch, herring, tuna. |
Beverages | Tea, light alcohol, mineral water. |
Oils and fats | Creamy, vegetable, flaxseed, olive. |
Can you drink alcohol if you have herpes? Can! However, it reduces your immunity, which is important for fighting the virus.
Basic principles of the emergence of a virus
Exacerbation of herpes virus infection is usually associated with chronic stress, hypothermia, and bacterial infections. Poor nutrition cannot ensure sufficient supply of vital substances to the body and is considered as a factor in the occurrence of recurrent herpes. Frequent exacerbations of herpesvirus of both the first and second types are observed. Complex treatment for herpes infection necessarily includes a diet, the principles of which boil down to the following points:
- Balance. Nutrition for herpes should have a sufficient amount of BJU (proteins, fats and carbohydrates), as well as vitamins and microelements. Lean meats should be included in the diet: rabbit, beef, horse meat, veal and chicken. A variety of fermented milk products, for example, fermented baked milk, kefir, and yogurt, bring significant benefits. Fish, especially sea fish, saturates the body with essential nutrients. It is advisable to give preference in nutrition to so-called complex carbohydrates - cereals, fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
- Gentle mode. To reduce the load on the liver during herpes, it is recommended to limit or completely eliminate canned foods, smoked, salted, fried and spicy foods. Rich soups and various seasonings, often containing chemical additives, have a negative effect on the digestive tract.
- Exclusion of alcoholic beverages. Drinking alcohol slows down the healing process for herpes infection and contributes to the development of complications.
Important!
Fermented milk products, which contain bifidobacteria, help restore healthy intestinal microflora. In order for the intake of dairy products to strengthen the immune system, you should pay attention to the expiration date. Yogurts contain live bifidobacteria only for two weeks from the date of production of the product.
Nutritional Features
Therapeutic nutrition is selected depending on the type of herpes.
Herpes on the body
If rashes are observed on the chest, buttocks, back, arms or legs, the following products should be included in the menu:
- fruits;
- berries;
- oatmeal;
- boiled potatoes;
- soups with chicken or vegetable broth;
- kefir;
- yogurt;
- vegetable stew;
- fruit juices.
Herpetic virus type 1
The disease is characterized by rashes on the lips, in the area of the nasolabial folds, on the face, and on the mucous membranes of the oral cavity. It is important to introduce foods containing large amounts of vitamins and microelements. Particular attention should be paid to fruits, of which you need to eat up to 1 kg per day.
Preference should be given to peaches, apricots, blueberries, and cranberries. The diet should also include the following products:
- potato;
- carrot;
- corn;
- beans;
- oatmeal;
- bran;
- seafood;
- chicken;
- beef;
- turkey;
- milk;
- butter;
- olive, vegetable oil.
Important! You need to take vitamin D.
Herpetic virus type 2
It is important that the products contain vitamin E, which is abundant in vegetable oil, wheat sprouts, and green onions. It is also recommended to use:
- cottage cheese;
- kefir;
- chicken meat;
- shrimp;
- turkey meat;
- potato;
- zucchini;
- grapefruit.
Expert opinion
Artem Sergeevich Rakov, venereologist, more than 10 years of experience
The rash affects the genitals, anus and their mucous membranes. Nutrition for this type of disease should be aimed at strengthening the immune system and restoring epithelial structures damaged by the virus. The emphasis should be on seafood, dairy products, and eat mushrooms daily.
Herpetic virus type 3
This disease is called shingles. Rashes in the form of small blisters are observed in the lumbar back and abdomen. It is recommended to consume foods as for type 1 virus, but it is necessary to introduce dishes that contain large amounts of zinc. It is found in seafood, beef, lamb and wheat grains.
You should also give preference to the following vitamins:
- vitamin C, which is found in strawberries, citrus fruits, kiwi;
- vitamin A, which is abundant in melon, zucchini, carrots, eggs;
- folic acid, which is found in cabbage, asparagus, citrus fruits, greens, and natural juices;
- vitamin D, which is found in salmon, trout, mushrooms, and fish oil;
- vitamin E contained in oils, spinach and broccoli.
Herpetic virus type 4
This type of disease negatively affects the functioning of the immune system, causing immunodeficiency and lymphoproliferative syndromes. A person’s body temperature rises, the lymph nodes in the neck become enlarged, and viral microorganisms multiply in the lymphocyte cavity. To alleviate a person’s condition during illness and prolong the period of remission, reduce the activity of herpetic viruses, it is necessary to follow a dietary diet:
- porridge;
- meat broths;
- boiled vegetables;
- decoctions of medicinal herbs;
- fresh juices;
- garlic;
- ginger;
- honey;
- fish fat;
- poultry meat;
- veal;
- kefir;
- yogurt.
Menu
Sample menu recommended for herpes zoster:
- In the morning, drink a glass of clean water, eat buckwheat porridge with a slice of cheese and a piece of toasted bread, and drink a cup of green tea.
- For a snack, a salad of apples and carrots, seasoned with yogurt and lemon juice, is suitable.
- For lunch, eat brown rice with liver stewed in sour cream, spinach leaf soup and any fermented milk drink without sugar.
- Dates and tea are perfect for an afternoon snack. You can also eat one orange or make fresh juice from it.
- In the evening, baked fish with green peas, fresh vegetables and rosehip decoction are allowed. Vegetables can be served in the form of a salad, dressed with olive oil.
- Before going to bed, a glass of kefir with 1% fat content.
Interesting article: Diet for psoriasis
Prevention
To prevent the development of the disease, it is important to follow preventive measures:
- maintain personal hygiene;
- wash vegetables and fruits before eating;
- exclude promiscuous sexual intercourse;
- harden the body;
- treat the disease in a timely manner;
- to refuse from bad habits;
- avoid physical and psychological stress;
- stop uncontrolled use of hormonal drugs and antibiotics;
- change your diet.
These preventive measures will help prevent the appearance of herpes. They are simple, safe and work well. The main thing is not to self-medicate. Only a specialist can determine the type of virus and prescribe adequate drug therapy.