So, I've been a vegan now for a little more than 3 months. I was just diagnosed with Shingles today, caused by stress, were my doctor's exact words. And I believe that because I've been incredibly stressed for the last few months. When I got home I decided to do some more research on the subject and came across some readings about B-12 and what an important roll it plays in nerve function. Shingles is a viral infection of the nerve roots. Since I don't really fit the profile of someone who would normally get Shingles, (elderly, weak immune system etc.) besides that I've had Chicken Pox as a child I'm starting to make the correlation to my recent change to veganism. I've been taking B-12  a couple times a week like recommended in Alicia's book but maybe it's not enough? I was wondering if anyone else has experienced this, or any other effects of not getting enough B-12. I'm considering going back to being vegetarian....any input?

 There are any number of reasons why a person's immune system could allow the shingles virus to break out. A nutrient deficiency is possible. It is also easily verified. If you are concerned, consider having a simple blood test. If you're be 12 is low you can increase your supplementation. We have not seen outbreaks resulting from these sorts of dietary changes happen in other people but that does not mean that it did not happen in your case. I would not suspect that re introducing animal-based foods would improve your health.

 Acupuncture is quite effective at resolving the painful rash. Traditional Chinese herbal medicine is excellent at killing the virus. Dietary factors tend to focus around sugar. The virus loves it when you eat sugar.

I have the same issue with Herpes Virus (similar virus strain to Shingles). What it is related to, apparently, is a disbalance of the amino acids in your body. L-Lysine and L-Arginine play a role. Shingles, when treated with Lysine, has a smaller duration of outbreak.

In a matter of prevention, look up a chart of foods containing arginine and lysine. The foods highest in Lysine will prevent outbreak of these viruses. HOWEVER, most of those foods are not vegan.  The foodest highest in Arginine are nuts- particularly, walnuts.

During your outbreak, do NOT eat any nuts. Play it safe and eat beans, soy, non-wheat whole grains, apricots, and avocados, as well as any vegetables you desire. Do not eat fruit with seeds.

However, I am a dedicated vegan and keep my balance of L-Lysine normal by taking a 1000 mg. supplement of L-Lysine. Make sure that the capsule is not gelatin (gelatin contains high arginine and is obviously not vegan). Being vegan and keeping a good Lysine/ Arginine balance in the body to prevent those kinds of viruses is not difficult with the right supplement.

Thanks for the answers guys. I'm better now, but I've been really confused with my diet since this whole thing started and to reduce my stress I decided to just eat what I know makes my body feel good and not read labels. (Never meat though becasue I think it's disgusting) I still eat vegan most of the time, I just don't stress about it like I used to. I just haven't figured out how to fit a vegan diet into a very stressful life. Right now I'm just focused on feeling better mentally so I think having a strict diet is just not for me. I grew up with eating disorders so anything related to food stresses me out bad. I should've known that before I started this whole thing, but I didn't.