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Is a low Arginine diet for Herpes permanent? Do you need to stay 100% strict with it forever?The answers are: Yes, No and Maybe…
The Low Arginine Diet for Herpes
Study all my blog posts and Podcasts on Herpes. I give detailed instructions on WHY to reduce high Arginine amino acid foods, and what to eat and avoid. Plus proven Supplements to help control HSV.
Check out these Podcasts and articles #1, #2, #3 and #4.
High Arginine foods include all grains (wheat, rice, corn, oats, barley), nuts and seeds, chocolate, coconut meat/milk and flour (the oil is OK), most beans (soy, pinto, etc.) and bone broth/gelatin/collagen.
The foods highest in beneficial Lysine are animal proteins and dairy.
Control then Manage Herpes
There are two goals: get HSV under control as quickly as possible, then learn to manage it long-term without too many restrictions on food. Or more supplements than needed.
Control HSV Without Medications Where Possible
The only time I find anti-viral meds useful are when immediately taken for a first infection outbreak. This is true for Shingles too – another virus in the Herpes family.
Natural health solutions aim to address the CAUSE of issues. The virus thrives on Arginine and Stress. The Diet is extremely effective for most people, especially when combined with Stress-balancing herbs and amino acids such as Lysine, Passion Flower and GABA.
If you are immune challenged (as I am, with a genetic immune deficiency) you may need to augment a low-Arginine Herpes diet with prescription anti-virals WHEN or IF the virus begins to flare and the proper supplements are not adequate.
Chronic fatigue, low Adrenal Cortisol, poor sleep and anxiety/fearfulness all affect your Immune System. Supporting the CAUSE of poor health is the goal of functional health coaches – not just treating symptoms with medications that don’t truly FIX the issue.
The Herpes Relief Guide
My 90-minute Herpes Relief Guide walks you through the low-Arginine Diet, the highest quality supplements, and how to dose them depending on your needs that day (or week).
Supplements for HSV
For most of us, the anti-viral supplements and diet are adequate. Most people’s immune systems will work if you remove the Arginine and the emotional stress that suppresses the immune system.
I take several anti-viral support herbs as I need them. Find these in my Online Store in the Herpes and Epstein Barr Category.
- Olive Leaf – I prefer to use the whole olive leaf, not the extract everyone else sells.
- Lysine – I like this one with NO additives, fillers or binders. Best between meals.
- Lemon Balm, also known as Melissa. It has a known history of use as an anti-viral in several forms.
- VIVI – Virox from Systemic Formulas
- Monolaurin or Lauric Acid
The key? Learn the minimum BASE dose that works for you once your diet is controlled for Arginine. Then learn the PULSED dose you need when Pro-Dromal (predictive) symptoms begin.
Is a Low Arginine Diet for Herpes Forever?
If you have done all the above and are really familiar with your (mostly controlled) outbreak pattern, you can try a few “forbidden” foods. A low Arginine diet for Herpes is not meant to be permanent if you are managing your overall health, stress and diet better.
(Grains however are off the menu. I teach a grain-free Ancestral/Paleo Diet to ALL Clients. Humans don’t eat grass seed. It’s not in our Biology to graze on grass and ferment it in multiple chambers of a stomach like an Herbivore).
Did you know? – some people are so sensitive to Arginine that 2 nuts will cause a flare.
Others haven’t had an outbreak in a year or more and are not very susceptible
It’s all individual. You have to determine the strictness of a Herpes diet that works for YOU.
Stress and Other HSV Triggers
As I have a genetically low immune system, I walk a fine line with several Herpes Viruses (Epstein Barr, Shingles, Cytomegalo Virus). I know that a stressful event will likely cause a flare and I will double my supplements for 2 or 3 days immediately without waiting for a symptom.
We all have food or environmental triggers that set off our immune system. Again, it’s an individual thing.
