• Vitamin A is found in whole milk, dairy products, eggs, and red or yellow vegetables like carrots. It helps maintain healthy skin and mucous membranes, which are the body's first line of defence against infections.
• B Vitamins are important for energy metabolism and immune function. Sources include whole grains, leafy green vegetables, yeast, liver, and kidneys.
• Vitamin C, abundant in fresh fruits and vegetables, is essential for immune health, wound healing, and fighting off infections.
• Vitamin D is produced in the skin with sunlight exposure, but it's difficult to obtain enough through diet alone. Vitamin D helps activate T-cells, which are essential for fighting pathogens. The best sources are sunlight, fortified foods, fatty fish like salmon, and egg yolks.
• Iron: Essential for immune function, iron is needed for the production of immune cells. It’s found in red meat, beans, and fortified cereals
• Selenium, found in Brazil nuts, meat, eggs, and fish, supports immune function and helps protect cells from damage. Just one Brazil nut a day can meet your selenium needs.
• Zinc, important for fighting viral infections, is found in red meat, shellfish, poultry, dairy products, and whole grains. Since vegetarians may struggle to get enough zinc from plant-based sources, supplements like zinc lozenges or syrup may be beneficial.

To boost your immune system:

• Eat raw or lightly cooked vegetables to preserve essential nutrients, as processed or overcooked foods may lack these.
• Avoid excess sugar and fat, which don’t contribute to health and can weaken immune function.
• Avoid processed foods
• Limit alcohol consumption, as it can suppress immune responses. Avoid binge drinking.
• Watch caffeine intake, as too much can increase stress, which may trigger herpes outbreaks in some individuals.

Although lifestyle changes may not completely prevent herpes simplex recurrences, maintaining good overall health through diet and self-care can support your immune system and potentially reduce the frequency or severity of outbreaks. You may want to consult with a registered dietician, nutritionist or naturopath to ensure that you are maintaining a healthy diet.

• Better Immune Cell Circulation: Moderate exercise boosts blood flow, which helps important immune cells like neutrophils and lymphocytes move around the body more efficiently. These cells are essential for finding and attacking harmful bacteria and viruses, making your body better prepared to fight off infections.
• Reduces Inflammation: Regular physical activity can lower levels of chronic inflammation in your body. This is important because ongoing inflammation can weaken your immune system. By exercising, you help keep inflammation in check, supporting a healthier and more balanced immune response.
• Lowers Stress and Supports Immunity: Exercise helps regulate cortisol, the hormone related to stress. High stress can weaken your immune system by lowering the effectiveness of white blood cells. Staying active helps reduce stress and supports a healthier immune system.

Incorporating regular, moderate exercise into your routine is a simple yet effective way to keep your immune system strong and resilient.

Inadequate sleep is also linked to higher levels of inflammatory markers, which can increase the risk of chronic conditions. Chronic inflammation weakens your immune system, making it less efficient at defending against illnesses. Additionally, sleep improves the function of T-cells, which are responsible for attacking infected cells. Studies have shown that people who get enough rest have better-functioning T-cells, allowing them to respond more effectively to infections like viruses and bacteria.

Sleep also helps regulate cortisol, the body's stress hormone. High cortisol levels, which can result from insufficient sleep, suppress the immune system and make it harder for your body to respond to infections. Getting enough rest lowers cortisol levels, promoting a balanced and more effective immune response. Therefore, a good night’s sleep is one of the simplest yet most powerful ways to support your immune health.

How much sleep do you need?

For most adults, the recommended amount of sleep is between 7 to 9 hours per night. However, quality matters too. If you’re having trouble falling or staying asleep, or you don’t feel rested after sleeping, it’s important to address these issues as they can impact your immune system.

Tips for better sleep:

• Stick to a consistent sleep schedule by going to bed and waking up at the same time each day.
• Create a relaxing bedtime routine, such as reading or meditating, to signal to your body that it’s time to wind down.
• Avoid caffeine, large meals, and screens close to bedtime, as they can interfere with your ability to fall asleep.

In summary, sleep plays a vital role in supporting your immune system, reducing inflammation, and improving your body’s response to infections. Prioritising a good night’s sleep is one of the easiest and most effective ways to boost your overall health.

Psychological stress, including emotional strain, anxiety, or life changes, has been found to be a common trigger for herpes recurrences. Stress activates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, leading to the release of stress hormones, such as cortisol. Cortisol suppresses the immune system, reducing the body’s ability to keep HSV dormant. Studies have found that individuals experiencing high levels of stress are more likely to report frequent herpes outbreaks.

Chronic stress weakens the immune system, making it less effective at controlling infections. The immune system relies on a balance of cells (like T-cells) to suppress HSV replication. When stress interferes with the body’s immune defences, it provides an opportunity for the virus to reactivate and cause symptomatic outbreaks. Even short-term stress can lead to immune dysfunction, further increasing the risk of herpes flare-ups. Elevated cortisol levels, which are a hallmark of chronic stress, have been shown to increase the replication of HSV in animal studies. This hormone not only reduces the immune system’s ability to fight off infections but also appears to facilitate viral reactivation, making it a direct link between stress and herpes outbreaks.

People with herpes often report more severe and prolonged outbreaks during stressful periods. A 2008 study found that individuals with high levels of stress reported significantly more herpes recurrences than those who managed their stress effectively. The severity of the lesions was also more pronounced in stressed individuals.

While some stress in life is unavoidable, instead of trying to eliminate it completely, we can focus on developing better ways to manage and cope with it.

Stress management and outbreak prevention: