How do you get shingles?
How do you get shingles? The answer to this question is both in the affirmative and negative. Shingles that is caused by the herpes zoster virus, the same virus that is responsible for chicken pox, cannot normally be spread from one person to another. That is because only those who have had chicken pox sometime in their lives can be affected by the herpes zoster virus. In other words, if someone has not suffered from chicken pox before, it is highly unlikely that he will get shingles – because the virus is not within his body. Actually, the same virus, having stayed dormant for years, comes back as shingles at a later stage. And since most people have suffered from chicken pox at some stage, normally shingles is not contagious. Learn more about if shingles are contagious.
But there can be exceptions to this. For example, what would happen if someone with shingles interacts with someone who hasn’t had chicken pox? In such a case, the virus can be transmitted, but then, the newly affected person will not get shingles – he will get chicken pox.