subject: Home Remedy For Cold Sores [print this page] Cold sores are definitely not something that anyone would ever want to deal with, but they are an inevitability that we all have to face at some point or another in our lives. In fact, some people are unfortunate enough that they have to deal with cold sores as an almost regular occurrence. Even the infrequent attacks cause a great deal of pain and discomfort, so you can imagine just how distressing it is to have to deal with cold sores every few months. The good news is that home remedies for cold sores can be remarkably effective in dealing with the condition.
There are many solutions for the condition available on the market of course, although they aren't always the best alternatives to home cold sore remedies. For one thing, such remedies can be expensive, especially if you consider that not all cold sore remedies on the market will work for everyone in the same way. There is a good chance that a cold sore remedy that works wonders for a friend or family member won't work for you at all, which means that you could be in for a lot of comparison shopping before you find a product that actually works for you.
In many ways, home remedies for cold sores are just as effective as over-the-counter solutions, and sometimes even more so. This is due to the very nature of the condition. Cold sores cannot actually be cured, and the best that home remedies for cold sores and over-the-counter solutions can do is to relieve the symptoms of the condition in varying degrees. Since both over-the-counter and home remedies for cold sores simply serve to ease the symptoms of the condition, choosing between one and the other is often simply a matter of cost, convenience, and preference.
One of the simplest home cold sore remedies is the application of a substance that will protect the sore from exposure. Petroleum jelly is ideally suited for this purpose, and it is one of the most effective home cold sore remedies around. It is also easily available anywhere and inexpensive of course.
In place of petroleum jelly, you may want to try applying an anesthetic ointment to the cold sore. For cold sore home remedies, it might be best to use a product that contains benzocaine, which can help numb the area while giving it a chance to heal. Aside from these two home remedies for cold sores, it isn't advisable to use any other product to cover up a cold sore, unless it has been specifically recommended by your doctor. Some skin care products contain chemicals that can actually worsen the situation or prolong the healing process, making them less suitable as home cold sore remedies.
Considerable relief from the pain may be obtained by using an over-the-counter painkiller such as aspirin, acetaminophen, or ibuprofen. Although such products are generally safe, it would probably be best to limit their use to instances wherein the pain from the cold sores becomes too much to bear.
