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If you had chickenpox as a child, you have an increased chance of developing shingles as an adult. If you’re currently dealing with a shingles rash, or trying to help a loved one who is dealing with the rash, you know how painful and uncomfortable it can be. You may be wondering whether coconut oil shingles will do anything to help the pain or speed up your recovery time. Let’s have a look at that question in the next few sections and learn more about using coconut oil for shingles.
Does coconut oil help shingles?
Will coconut oil help clear up shingles? Yes, using coconut oil alongside the shingles treatment prescribed by your doctor can be helpful. There are a few different reasons coconut oil can help treat shingles. These include:
- Coconut oil has antiviral properties. This can help prevent infection and kill off the virus in our bodies.
- Coconut oil also has anti-inflammatory properties. This means it may help allow the blisters to heal more quickly and prevent scarring.
- Coconut oil is moisturizing, which can prevent the rash from getting cracked or itchy.
Can I eat coconut if I have shingles?
Does eating coconut oil help shingles? While applying coconut oil over a shingles rash can help decrease the pain you’re experiencing and allow the blisters to heal more quickly, you should not eat coconut oil when you have shingles. Coconut is a food to avoid when dealing with a shingles rash due to the high saturated fat content. Choosing foods with lower fat contents are better for helping improve your body’s immune system when you’re dealing with shingles.

Can coconut oil cure shingles?
Using coconut oil alongside the antiviral medications prescribed by your doctor can help clear up the rash more quickly.
Can you put coconut oil on shingles?
Yes, as we shared above, you can apply coconut oil to shingles to help the rash heal more quickly and decrease the amount of pain you feel. Additionally, you can also use coconut oil as a carrier oil for essential oils that can help with shingles. Some of these potentially beneficial essential oils include peppermint oil, geranium oil, and capsaicin.

Can coconut oil soothe shingles rash?
Yes, applying coconut oil to a shingles rash can help to soothe your skin and provide some relief from the pain and discomfort of the rash. In addition to being an anti-inflammatory and antiviral substance, coconut oil is also moisturizing and will keep the rash from getting overly itchy.
How to Cure Shingles with Coconut Oil
Here are the steps you can follow to treat your shingles with coconut oil. You will need virgin coconut oil and cotton balls.
- Wash
Wash your skin/the rash and pat it dry.
- Pour oil
Pour some of the coconut oil into a small bowl.
- Use cotton ball
Place a cotton ball into the bowl of coconut oil and allow it to sit for a few seconds and soak up some oil.
- Dab
Gently dab the cotton ball over the blisters and rash.
- Repeat
Repeat these steps multiple times a day to help the rash heal more quickly.
Coconut Oil for Shingles
Having shingles is certainly no fun. If you’re dealing with the pain and discomfort that comes along with a shingles rash, you may want to try applying some coconut oil to it. The anti-inflammatory and anti-viral properties of coconut oil may help you heal more quickly and prevent scarring from the rash.
To learn more about other uses for coconut oil, check out these related posts on our blog: