subject: Cold Sores: How Do I Stop Persistent Cold Sore Bouts? [print this page] Cold sores are a common occurrence for millions of people in every country of the world. The herpes simplex virus causes cold sores as a side effect of creating new virus particles.
Cold sores are painful and unsightly blisters that usually occur around the mouth or nose but can show up elsewhere. They are extremely contagious and you can catch them, or pass them on, through direct contact with a sore or virus-laden saliva.
This virus, once it infects you, will be with you for life. As yet, we have not discovered a way (either naturally or medically) to find and eradicate this parasite virus from the body.
Fortunately, there are several ways that you can treat and prevent cold sores through commercial medicine or natural home remedies.
The early-warning symptoms will usually be an itching or tingling feeling where the sore is going to form. Then small red bumps will appear, finally developing into a full-blown sore.
Outbreaks usually occur when your immune system becomes impaired. This can be because of illness, injury or other stressful situations. Keeping your defenses high will reduce the chances of developing a sore.
Taking premium quality multi-vitamins each day, with high levels of the B and C vitamins and calcium, will greatly defend you against an attack.
Lysine is another excellent remedy provided by nature. This is an amino acid (protein) that you can get from your diet or as a supplement. It works by stopping the herpes virus from multiplying.
Do you get a lot of cold sores? Do your outbreaks seem especially bad? These are two very good reasons to take lysine (one or two capsules) on a daily maintenance program.
If you suffer only an occasional outbreak, just take it during the outbreak. As a direct therapy, most people take four to eight capsules per day.
One caution I would like to mention. Except for the two reasons mentioned above, it would probably be wise not to take it everyday for prevention. Your body could get used to it requiring increasing amounts to work. Lysine is very safe but you want it to work best when you need it most.
Zinc is a well-known and respected mineral that greatly helps healing and immunity. You do not need much. About 50 milligrams per day should be all you need. Any good vitamin supplement will provide you with around 30 milligrams per day.
You can also get separate zinc supplements if you wish. Some folks crush zinc tablets, make a paste with olive oil or tea tree oil and apply that.
Do you want a better idea? Get some of those zinc lozenges or rapid-melts, sold to treat head colds, and suck on them. The zinc in these products is in a form that absorbs very well and will get into your bloodstream very quickly.
Put this zinc directly on your sore (by wetting and rubbing on the outbreak) and you will get much better results than commercial zinc salves.
One of the more popular pharmaceutical treatments provided by the drug companies is a cream containing acyclovir. This product calls for you to apply the cream at least five times a day for five days.
Penciclovir is another similar FDA approved anti-virus remedy. It can be quite a bit of work too. You have to apply it every two hours, while you are awake, for a minimum of four days to expect faster healing and reduction of symptoms.
These commercial anti-viral creams work by slowing down the spread of the herpes simplex virus infection, and they do work if you have patience.
They certainly do not work as fast as some natural home cold sore remedies. In addition, they are not as convenient or economical.
There are also prescription oral tablets that you can take to treat cold sores. These anti-virus pills usually contain famciclovir or valacyclovir. They can be hard on your liver and kidneys. Use with caution!
There are several over-the-counter remedies available containing natural or medicating agents both of which can give some measure of relief and will help deaden the pain.
The earlier you start treatment with any remedy, the more successful your results will be.
You should experiment with different treatments and ways to prevent them to work out which ones function best for you.
If you constantly get outbreaks, you may wish to talk to a doctor or naturopath for in depth information relating more directly to your personal situation.
It also might be very wise for you to visit some good web sites that specialize in information and facts about cold sores. There you will find answers to all your questions and some naturally safe cold sore remedies that will work for you.
