Have you ever heard of L-lysine? Have you ever had a fever blister (cold sore) or shingles? Lysine is a building block for protein. It’s an essential amino acid because your body cannot make it, so you need to obtain it from food.

Lysine is one of nine essential amino acids in humans required for growth and tissue repair, Lysine is supplied by many foods, especially red meats, fish, and dairy products.

This past week in our town we had a major snow storm with temps that are unheard of for Oklahoma. Due to freezing temps (frozen pipes), rolling blackouts, no water in our house for 6 days, hours of melting snow for water…. I developed a cold sore, first one in a couple of years.

The stress not being able to work, leave the house, flush toilets, make dinner (because that causes dishes that needs washed) and the lack of taking my vitamins at night 🙈 all came toppling over on me. When I noticed the distinct feel of a cold sore, I started taking 3 L-lysine at a time, 3 times a day. In just 4 days it has shown up, and scabbed over. The average cold sore lasts 2-3 weeks!

Uses of L-lysine

1. Protects against cold sores. Cold sores are caused by the herpes simplex virus type 1. (Type 2 is genital herpes and it is possible to get type 1 down below and type 2 on your mouth!) Herpes simplex virus is very contagious and needs caution needs to be taken when you have an outbreak. In times of stress and when your immune system is weakened, the virus can trigger the development of a cold sore.

A study found that a daily supplement of 1,000 mg of lysine resulted in fewer cold sores. The study showed that cold sore breakouts were reduced when a person’s blood lysine measure was kept above 165 nmol/l. When blood levels dropped below, cold sore breakouts increased.

2. Promotes wound healing. In animal tissue, lysine becomes more active at the site of a wound and helps speed up the repair process. Lysine is required for the formation of collagen, which in turn helps with wound healing.

3. Helps lower fasting blood sugar and reduce inflammation of the pancreas, both of which help people with diabetes manage blood sugar levels. 

4. Helps heal shingles and prevent outbreaks. Just like cold sores, shingles come from the Herpes virus. Specifically the Herpes Zoster virus. When you are stressed or immunocompromised and have had chicken pox in the past, it is a possibility you can develop shingles.

5. Supports gut health. L- lysine has anti-inflammatory properties that are helpful in regulating the digestive system and reducing the effects of leaky gut. Leaky gut is a digestive condition in which bacteria and food particles “leak” through the intestinal wall and causes food sensitivities, low energy, joint pain, autoimmune diseases, and thyroid disease.

Foods to avoid during an outbreak

Any foods that are high in Arginine. Arginine is an amino acid that helps the shingles virus replicate. Exactly what we don’t want! Some of the most common ones are:

• Most nuts (especially peanuts and peanut butter!) and seeds
• Soybeans
• Chocolate
• Tomatoes
• Turkey
• Pork

Other arginine-heavy foods to stay away from are wheat germ, Brussels sprouts, and some fruits including grapes, blackberries and blueberries.

Chiropractic

Stressors in life cause subluxations. Subluxations cause pain and dysfunction in the body. Chiropractic adjustments can help you work on creating a better environment for your body. It helps boost the immune system and increases antibodies in the blood and decreases the anti-inflammatory response.

When you start to notice something is wrong, those symptoms are only 10% of what the body is actually doing. (Symptoms are always last! You have to have a break down in the system before you notice something is wrong first.) The other 90% is changing your posture, sending inflammation into your body and sending stress hormones into your body which produces dysfunction.

The chiropractic adjustment along with whole foods and supplementation can drastically change your life. (Diet, water, rest, all the things.) Don’t put off today what can help you tomorrow. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure! Give us or a chiropractor near you a call to put you on the road to health.

~Dr. Lacey~
Carder Chiropractic Clinic, INC.
El Reno, OK 73036