The Secret To Cure Cold Sores

Depending on the severity of the infection it may be worth your while to first try to one of the natural remedies for cold sore treatment as many people have found relief from these methods.

Despite the fact that these remedies have not been scientifically proven to cure or shorten the duration of cold sores many people have reported them to be beneficial in alleviating the discomfort of cold sores.

What Causes Cold Sores?

Firstly the hard cold truth is that there is currently no permanent cold sore cure – unfortunately once a person has been infected with the Herpes Simplex Virus I (HSV-1) that causes cold sores, it will remain in your system for the rest of your life.

Once the virus has entered into a person’s body it remains inactive most of the time, lying dormant in the nerve cells because our immune system is able to keep the virus at bay.

Whenever the immune system is weakened the virus tends to become active and can begin to replicate and move from the nerve cells to the surface of the skin causing sores that start as blisters around the mouth, lips or nose. They are usually relatively small but are often very painful.

The blisters normally burst and then weep a clear fluid. After a few days the sores will scab, known as the crusting stage, and will take 7 to 10 days to heal completely without treatment. It stands to reason that top priority should be given to building a strong immune system, thereby reducing the chances of the virus being activated. This can be achieved by following a well-balanced healthy diet, daily exercising, avoiding extended periods of stress and ensuring that you get sufficient sleep.

A strong immune system will definitely help reduce the frequency of cold sore attacks but is not a cold sore cure and sufferers will still experience the dreaded attacks. Fortunately there are a number of tried and tested ways of easing the symptoms of cold sores which will reduce the discomfort and possibility of scarring and at the same time ensure that the sore heals more rapidly.

The two main methods of treating cold sores when they appear are by using cold sore medication and by using natural remedies.

Cold sore medication consists of anti-viral medication containing either acyclovir or penciclovir which act as suppressants to the cold sore virus. These medications can decrease the virus’s ability to replicate and reduce the severity of the attack if they are applied at the onset of the attack – in the tingling stage.

Conventional cold sore treatments have been known to cause unpleasant side effects in a proportion of sufferers who have found home remedies to be more beneficial for them.

Natural remedies are safe and easy to use and can be tested until the most appropriate one found. Applying ice to the infected area at the onset of the attack is reported to act as a numbing agent thereby reducing the pain and discomfort and is also known to reduce the swelling.

Taking L-Lysine supplements can act to reduce the severity of attacks. To prevent secondary bacterial infections and reduce the chances of spreading the virus to other parts of your body petroleum products can be applied to the cold sore.

There are many other natural remedies that have been tried and tested by cold sore sufferers and until such time as there is a cold sore cure it may well be worth the while of sufferers to consider natural remedies.

Irrespective of which cold sore treatment you opt for, bear in mind that all stages of cold sore formation should be considered to be contagious. Avoid spreading the herpes virus to other parts of your body or to other people by washing your hands after applying any medication or treatment to a cold sore.

When treating cold sores it is of the utmost importance to start treatment at the onset of a cold sore, during the tingling stage, as this is the stage when the herpes simplex virus becomes reactivated and starts to replicate. By slowing down the replication the damage caused by the virus can be reduced considerably.

References:

How to Get Rid Of Cold Sores Overnight - Abigail Crawford (August 2017)