Natural Treatments for Cold Sores

If you are or your kids is a regular cold sore sufferer, the first thing that you should do is avoid foods that are too acidic or salty. Furthermore, foods such as chocolate, peanuts, grains, oatmeal and whole-wheat may be good for you in some ways but if you are a cold sore sufferer, these foods can exacerbate your condition because they are high in arginine.
Arginine is an essential amino acid but there is evidence that having too much of this particular amino is in conflict with lysine, another essential amino acid which helps fight against herpes simplex. Hence, cutting down on argenine-rich foods allows lysine to do its work more efficiently.
You should also increase the amount of foods that are rich in vitamins A, C and E that you consume as these vitamins help fight herpes, with a recommended dose of at least 5000 mg of vitamin C a day being highly desirable. You should also increase the amount of iron and (particularly) zinc that you ingest every day as it is believed that these trace minerals also help to keep the herpes virus under control.
Basically, what you need to do is increase your general ‘wellness' levels because although it is not known exactly why the dormant herpes simplex virus generates cold sores every now and then, it is obvious that there must be some reason why this happens. It is also not unreasonable to assume that the stronger and healthier you are, the less likely it is to happen, so improving the overall quality of your diet might be all that you need to do to keep cold sores at bay.
Another health giving food that is widely recommended is garlic as it contains allicin which is one of the strongest natural antibacterials known to man. It is however best if garlic is taken either raw or in the form of garlic capsules because if it is cooked, a degree of the goodness is lost.
Eating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables is also highly advisable, with organic produce being the best because of the high level of natural nutrients contained in produce of this nature.
Lysine can be obtained from many foods such as milk, eggs, red meat, brewer's yeast, wheat germ and fish, so one step in the right direction would be to increase the amount of these foods that you consume.
Even so, there may be times when you should boost your herpes resistance with lysine supplements as evidence indicates that thinking 1000mg of lysine three times a day reduces cold sore healing time by a considerable margin.

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Is Your Lifestyle Preventing You From Having Kids

Lifestyle has a lot to do without being able to conceive. Couples who can't conceive are just starting to get a grip on this important fact.
The factors that are known to increase the risk of both male and female infertility include many other lifestyle related matters such as smoking, drinking alcohol to excess, stress, poor diet, excessive athletic training and being overweight or underweight.
Now, in the same way that a couple can decide that they are willing to give up materialistic wealth in order to have a child at a younger age, they can also make lifestyle decisions to change or remove some of these factors which make it less likely that trying to have a baby will be successful.
For example, as reported by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, there is evidence that smoking damages a woman’s ovaries and the amount that she smokes will have a direct effect on the amount of damage being done. Furthermore, smoking accelerates the loss of eggs brought on by the advancing years, whilst 'Smoking is strongly associated with an increased risk of spontaneous miscarriage and possibly ectopic pregnancy as well.'
Consequently, it is obvious that doing something as simple as giving up smoking would significantly increase the chances of having a baby. And of course, improving your nutrition levels, giving up alcohol and maintaining a well-balanced body weight will all help as well.
Then there is the question of sexual hygiene, because it is also true that one of the major causes of infertility are sexually transmitted infections or STI's, and these are far more prevalent than most people realize.
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease is a major cause of infertility in women, and one of the biggest causes of PID is Chlamydia, which according to this site affects 1 in 10 of young British people under the age of 25.
Twenty percent of Americans have herpes are over the age of twelve. Eighty percent of people with this problem have no idea they have a STD at all.
Basically, sexually transmitted infections and diseases (many of which are not even apparent, with the carrier completely unaware that they are in fact a carrier) are one of the major causes of infertility, so monogamy and practicing safe sex is an absolute must for anyone who is serious about having a baby.
For both men and women who believe that they are infertile, making these lifestyle changes can make a huge difference to their ability to have a baby.
Whether it is giving up smoking or drinking or whether you simply need to lose or gain weight, it is a fact that changing your life can significantly influence your ability to conceive.
Consequently, for anyone who believes themselves to be infertile, making these changes should be nothing more than basic common sense.

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