By: Terry Graedon August 1, 2024 6 Comments
    Show 1394: Viruses, Vaccines and Alzheimer Disea…

    This week, we explore the role viruses may play in the development of dementia. That certainly sounds like a downer, but here is the brighter side: vaccines can significantly lower the risk! Joe and T…

    By: Joe Graedon July 15, 2024 23 Comments
    Tagamet for Warts and Shingles!

    Cimetidine (Tagamet) was the first prescription H2 antagonist to ease symptoms of heartburn and heal ulcers. It was introduced in the U.S. in 1977 as a prescription medication. This drug became a gian…

    By: Terry Graedon February 19, 2024 20 Comments
    How to Use Capsaicin Ointment to Ease Pain

    Chronic pain has a devastating impact on your quality of life. Often, though, the medicines you would take to relieve pain can trigger dangerous side effects over the long term. Several readers report…

    By: Terry Graedon December 12, 2022 24 Comments
    Will Cannabis Cream Really Ease Neuropathy?

    People with neuropathy are often desperate for relief. The causes of this nerve pain may vary, from drug side effects to the aftermath of an infection. Sometimes too little or too much of a common vit…

    By: Terry Graedon August 22, 2022 60 Comments
    How Good Is the Shingrix Vaccine Against Shingle…

    If you have ever had chicken pox as a kid, you are at risk for shingles as an adult. That's because the virus that causes this childhood illness is varicella zoster, the same virus that causes shingle…

    By: Terry Graedon September 28, 2020 4 Comments
    Will Eating Tuna Make Shingles Worse?

    Shingles is a nasty condition in which the chickenpox virus triggers a painful rash many years later. The varicella zoster virus (part of the herpes virus family) can lie dormant for years after a you…

    By: Terry Graedon June 1, 2020 10 Comments
    Can Splashing Listerine on Shingles Ease Lingeri…

    Have you heard about a home remedy that seems weird? Many people are justifiably skeptical when a treatment arises from outside the mainstream. We usually like to share such an approach if it 1) might…

    By: Karen Berger, PharmD, RPh December 6, 2018 70 Comments
    Shingrix: Should You or Shouldn’t You? A Pharm…

    Currently, in community/retail pharmacy, there is a large focus on immunizations. Especially in the fall months, much time is spent on vaccinating patients against influenza (flu) and pneumonia. Recen…

    By: Terry Graedon July 13, 2017 8 Comments
    Shingles Linked to Risk of Heart Attack

    Recent research from South Korea raises the unsettling prospect that an attack of shingles is not only painful but scary. It could raise the risk of heart attack. What Is Shingles? Shingles, known med…

    By: Joe Graedon August 31, 2015 21 Comments
    Apple Cider Vinegar Soothed Shingles Pain

    Serious suffering may inspire creative experimentation. We are often impressed with the variety of remedies people use to ease shingles pain. If you see a doctor early enough in a shingles attack, sh…

    By: Joe Graedon January 12, 2015 27 Comments
    Using L-Lysine Against Shingles

    Q. My body gives me a warning before an attack of shingles: I get pain on the skin in the area where I had full-blown shingles before. I have found if I take L-lysine as soon as I get that signal, I d…

    By: Joe Graedon August 21, 2014 84 Comments
    Long-Term Benefits of Shingles Vaccine (Zostavax…

    Q. I am totally confused about the shingles vaccine. I was immunized three years ago at a cost of $220. Since I did not have insurance at the time I had to pay for the shot out of pocket. Now I read t…

    By: Joe Graedon December 3, 2012 32 Comments
    Is Shingles Shot Worth It?

    Q. I am 69 and my sister is 71. We don't remember ever having chicken pox. I have asked two doctors if you can get shingles if you never had chicken pox. I got two different answers. The same thing ha…

    By: Joe Graedon November 5, 2012 23 Comments
    Listerine Mouthwash for Shingles

    Q. Three weeks after a shingles attack I was suffering excruciating nerve pain across the right side of my scalp and behind my ear. Acetaminophen with codeine was not working. One morning at 3 am I fi…

    By: Terry Graedon April 25, 2011 185 Comments
    Listerine Helps Ease Shingles Pain

    Shingles is a common affliction that happens to middle-age or older people who had chickenpox as children. The rash, which can be excruciating, is often one-sided because it follows the route of th…

    By: Terry Graedon March 7, 2011 85 Comments
    Many Ways to Fight Shingles Pain

    It's an odd name for a nasty condition: shingles. It has nothing to do with roofing. The Latin name, cingulum, meaning "belt," became "shingles" in early English. The Latin name is a reference to the …

    By: Terry Graedon January 13, 2011 38 Comments
    Shingles Vaccine Helps Older People

    How good is the shingles vaccine? A new study shows that vaccinating healthy older adults makes a significant difference. Shingles is a common and painful skin rash resulting from reactivation of the …

    By: Terry Graedon September 13, 2010 11 Comments
    Hot Pepper to Ease Pain

    Q. I have diabetes and high blood pressure. My blood sugar is under control with insulin and I am on Diovan for the blood pressure. Over the last few years, I have suffered with numbness and pain in m…