With any virus invasion, your body creates anti-bodies to defend against them. Your need a wide array of nutrients to create strong anti-bodies. These natural chemicals are what we call vitamins and minerals. (There are also many known and unknown phyto-nutrients that come into play.)

Besides the cold sore virus, your body contains many other viruses - maybe even the poliovirus. Usually, however, your body defenses keep these viruses from ever becoming active. In effect, your body has created IMMUNITY to many of these viruses.

There are eight strains of the herpes simplex virus that we know of. The two strains responsible for cold sores are herpes simplex type 1 and type 2. The other five strains have been identified as causing diseases such as chickenpox, mono, and shingles.

Yes - chickenpox is closely related to cold sores. It is a terrible disease to suffer as an adult. Although many of us are carrying the virus, we do not get it because we have developed immunity to it.

The virus that causes cold sores is a tiny, sub-microscopic parasite. It must have a host to live and create new virus. The herpes simplex virus will replicate by entering a nerve cell on the surface, and forcing that cell to become a virus production facility. Once the cell has created all the virus it can, the cell is destroyed to release the new herpes.

As fast as scientists come up with a new anti-viral drug, the virus mutates and develops immunity to it. Acyclovir for cold sores and genital sores worked quite well when first introduced. Quickly, though, it has become less effective in killing herpes virus. There are many spin-offs of acyclovir that have become nearly obsolete too.

Our bodies were created to take care of themselves. Whenever any virus invades us, our body creates anti-bodies against that particular strain. Every time you get a cold sore, your body creates a fresh batch of anti-bodies to add to the existing army. Our body will create new anti-bodies just as fast as the viruses mutate. If created properly - with sufficient nutrients - these anti-bodies can make you immune to cold sores.

Vaccines, such as the polio vaccine, have been successful in curing many viral diseases. They are not designed to kill the virus directly but to aid the body in creating its own immunity to the virus - anti-bodies and killer cells. This is, by far, the best medicine for today's many virus threats. With cold sores, especially, you do not need the help of a vaccine. Your body can do it all for you - if you give it the necessary vitamins and minerals.

Why not get all the vitamins from food? Years ago we could. Our food was rich and contained all the nutrients we needed. Today, because of commercial farming, our land is becoming desperately depleted of these nutrients. The plants still look the same - they just do not carry the nutrition they once did.

Scientists recently stated that it would take 60 servings of spinach today to equal one serving in 1949. Our bodies are starving. Researchers now feel that this may be a major reason why chronic diseases are epidemic today. We simply have weak immune systems. I believe this is why there are more people getting cold sores today - and with increasing frequency.

I hope this all makes sense to you now. In order for you to truly hope to become immune to cold sores, and prevent many other chronic diseases, you must begin a daily regimen of good vitamin supplementation. By doing so, you will be giving your body the building blocks needed for a strong immune system and for cold sore prevention.