A limited supply of a new vaccine for the prevention of shingles is now available to patients on private prescription.

I'm in the studio with Dr Robert Johnson, Consultant in Pain Medicine, and Marian Nicholson, Director of the Shingles Support Society. One in four Brits will develop shingles at some point in their lifetime, so this awareness campaign is hugely relevant to us all! The risk of getting the disease is higher for those aged 50+, but younger people can be at risk - especially if their immune system is weaker than average.

So how do you get shingles? Well if you've had chickenpox as a child, then the virus stays dormant in the body until it is reactivated (either through being exhausted, run down or stressed), causing shingles. Shingles can be identified by a rash on one side of the body; either on the upper body, head or neck...and sometimes around the eye area. Early symptoms include headache, fever, tiredness - and the disease can lead to serious long-term conditions such as depression, severe pain and in some cases even blindness.

There is now a new vaccine available to patients over 50, which has proven to prevent shingles in over half of people that receive it. For anyone worried about shingles, more information can be found at shinglessupport.org and shinglesaware.co.uk. Also ask your GP for further advice.