Mouth Sores Treatment

Thrush Infection

Thrush is a type of fungus.  It is a build up of yeast that naturally grows in your mouth.  Thrush can be caused by taking antibiotics, especially medicines that have dry mouth as a side effect.  Antibiotics can kill the regular bacterias in your mouth; with these bacteria gone the fungus that causes thrush grows actively.

Thrush can be painful but it isn’t always a symptom.

First indications of a Thrush Infection:

-White patches on your tongue, inside your cheeks, roof of your mouth and/or corners of your lips.  The white patches have the consistency of curdled milk and if you try to scrape the thrush off you may cause some pain or bleeding.

-Thrush mouth will make your mouth taste bad and will also cause bad breath.

You will want to call a dentist or your doctor as soon as you experience these problems so you can get thrush treatment as soon as possible.

Thrush Treatment

Your health care professional will give you some antifungal medications to get rid of the thrush infection.  Thrush treatment takes about 7-10 days.

Do not try to scrape thrush out of your mouth yourself.  Since the fungus is growing because of a lack of normal bacteria’s; it will continue to grow and could begin growing down your esophagus.

Get treatment for your thrush symptoms immediately.  Thrush can also be indicative of other problems, like HIV or some other sickness within your body.  Your dentist or doctor can help you find out what caused your thrush infection.

It happens at some point in a person’s life.  Gums can become sore and can start to detach from the teeth.  Receding gums can happen at a young age or you can go half your life with no dental problems and suddenly have to be referred to periodontists all over town.

Dental hygiene has ALOT to do with the quality of your gum tissue.  Gums do not regenerate so when you start to lose this rubbery tissue it will not come back.  This is very bad for teeth because your gums hold your teeth into you mouth.

Sore gums and swollen gums do not automatically indicate that you have a major problem.  It could be that you’ve chronically been brushing your teeth too roughly and irritating your sensitive gums.  There are many reasons that cause sore gums, even diabetes and heart disease, so see your dentist if the problems persist.  It could be indicative of other health issues.

Also, having swollen gums does not automatically mean you need to get a gum graft or have gum surgery.  You could have periodontal disease and there are a few ways to treat it, you need to consult your periodontist for treatment that is right for you.

If you suspect you have receding gums:

-your tooth or teeth may have gaps between them; this is because that gum tissue is no longer cushioning the spaces between teeth.

-gums that bleed every time you brush or floss could be a major indicator of a receding gum line.

-your teeth are now very sensitive to hot or cold, this is because the root is becoming exposed.

Be sure to always have your teeth cleaned every six months to avoid gum surgery in your future.  Having good oral hygiene is the most painless and least expensive way to prevent mouth sores.

Mainly on this blog we have talked about the Herpes Simplex 1 virus, which are cold sores.  I have seen some questions regarding tongue sores and what they are and how to get rid of them.

In this post we’ll look at the different reasons a tongue could get ulcers or become sore.

1. The first, and most obvious reason your tongue could have a sore is because you bit it.  Maybe you don’t remember biting your tongue but it’s very possible this is the cause for the soreness.
2. The second most obvious reason your tongue could have sores or ulcers is because you ate something that has irritated it or that you are allergic to.  If you are having an allergy your tongue could swell up pretty big so keep track of the time and if you notice a significant difference in the size of your tongue in just a few moments you had better get to a close hospital.

   If you ate something that has just irritated your tongue, something acidic like pineapple or tomato sauce, the sores will go away in a day or two.

3. What do the sores on your tongue look like?
   Are they little white dots?

   These little white spots on your tongue could be inflamed taste buds.  These dots are sort of hard and they are annoying because the tongue is such a sensitive part of the body.  Having the small white spots isn’t anything to cause alarm and they should disappear in a few days; however if the dots don’t go away or they multiply please go to a doctor or free clinic.

4. Herpes Simplex causes most mouth sores problems for people young and old.  Painful white sores or lesions on your tongue could be from the herpes simplex virus and you should go to a doctor for treatment.
5. If you notice that you have weird bumps, discoloration or sores in your mouth that were never there before, make sure you examine it daily for changes; even if the abnormality isn’t painful it is important to pay attention to it.  Most cancers do not have symptoms of pain in the beginning so if you notice a sore that doesn’t go away you need to make an appointment with your doctor for a diagnosis!

Cold sores know no age. They attack people of all ages, and children are among the most susceptible to contracting these lip sores, also called fever blisters.

In fact, some doctors say as many as 1 in 5 children will contract Herpes Simplex 1, HSV-1, the virus that causes cold sores.

Luckily, treating cold sores and preventing lip blisters isn’t much different in children than it is in adults.

How to Recognize Cold Sores

Cold sores, unlike other mouth sores, are usually small, red bumps that appear primarily as sores on lips. They can appear inside the mouth, but that is rare. Cold sores can also creep up into the nose and they can cause a lot of pain no matter where they show up.

These fever blisters can last 1-2 weeks, often erupting a few days after a child feels a tingling in their lips. Once the sore grows, it will eventually burst and leak a white fluid. The exposed lip sore will then crust over and last as many as 10 days.

After healing, sores on lips will leave a red mark on the child’s face for as long as a month in some cases.

What Problems Cause Cold Sores in Children?

Just like adults, kids can get HSV-1 from the following:

• Sickness
• Overexposure to Sunlight
• Stress
• Chapped Lips
• Sharing Food or Drink with a Kid Who Has Cold Sores

Read more about what problems cause cold sores.

Fever Blister Treatment for Kids

There is no cure for cold sores, but you can take steps to help heal lip sores more quickly.

Here’s how to take action:

• Make sure the child is getting a balanced diet. Doctors have linked improper diets to contributing to trigger factors in cold sores.
• Give the child foods high in Lysine, a compound known for quickening the lifespan of a lip sore. Foods high in lysine include Chicken, Beans and Fish.
• Apply moisturizer to the cold sore
• Cover sores on lips with a balm
• Acetominophen and Ibuprofen can be given to some children to help ease the pain caused by lip blisters.

Get more cold sore remedies.

Prevent Cold Sores

Cold sores can’t be completely prevented, but kids can reduce the likelihood of a cold sore outbreak.

A simple step would be to make sure child washes his or her hands and face regularly, especially when they are around a child who currently has cold sores.

Get more methods to prevent cold sores.

In this post you are going to learn all about three competing lip balms that all claim to cure lip sores.  I’ll list the ingredients in these products and give you all the information I have so you can make an informed purchase of the best lip balm for you to cure lip sores.

Herpecin-L Lip Balm Stick, SPF 30

Apply Herpecin when you feel your lips begin tingling.  This balm is known to stop cold sores in their tracks.  There are a lot more reviews out there about Carmex but I think that is because Carmex has been around longer and therefore has a greater loyalty.

Herpecin is a really great product and it has cured my lip sores before they even get to the blister stage.

Ingredients:

Sunscreen – Sun burn is known to agitate the skin and cause lip sores
Lemon Balm, Vitamin B6 – skin conditioner
Dimethicone – seals moisture in skin
Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Lysine – antioxidants

Carmex Cold Sores Click Stick Lip Moisturizer with Sunscreen, Cherry Flavor, SPF 15

Carmex Lip Balm seals in lip moisture and helps prevents your lips from getting dried out or wind burned. Sun is a known culprit in causing cold sores and lip sores so having the double feature of sunscreen along with the moisturizer is a great way to cure lip sores.

Carmex is a long, trusted brand in cold sore prevention and relief.  Many people swear by it and take Carmex with them wherever they go.  For a while I even heard rumors that Carmex had addictive qualities.
It doesn’t, if you are worried.

Besides the somewhat medicinal taste of Carmex, it works really well at relieving burning, itching and swelling of mouth sores.  Carmex, in my experience, has never prevented a cold sore from appearing like Herpecin does but Carmex does an excellent job at keeping lips moisturized and soft, which will keep cold sores from happening in the long run.  If you wear Carmex daily you’ll probably have fewer mouth sores.

If I were you I would not buy the flavored Carmex.  Scents and added dyes can irritate your lip sore further.  It is always best to stick with an all natural product with no added flavors–although the flavored type is tempting to buy since Carmex doesn’t taste great.

Active Ingredients:
Octinoxate
Oxybenzone

Inactive Ingredients:
Petrolatum
Lanolin
Meadow Foam
Seed Oil
Camphor
Menthol
Phenol
Salicylic Acid in a mixture of fragrance

Blistex Medicated Lip Ointment

Blistex offers hydrating lip therapy for extremely chapped lips.  Chapped lips leave lips sore and dry and this can cause a lip sore outbreak.  The nice thing about Blistex is that the menthol in it makes your lips instantly feel cool and refreshed.  It relieves burning and itching right away and it doesn’t have the waxy taste associated with Herpecin or Carmex.  Blistex has a nourishing feel but again, it doesn’t prevent or cure a cold sore; it does help relieve the lip sores once they come though.

At the first sign of a lip sore, fever blister or severe chapping or sunburn rub this ointment on your lips to soothe and protect them.

Like Carmex (with flavoring) Blistex does offer balms that have added flavors.  This can cause further irritation to your sores if you have a bad reaction to it.  Keep this in mind when making your product choice.

Active Ingredients:
Allantoin
Camphor
Menthol
Phenol

Inactive Ingredients:
ammonium hydroxide
beeswax
calcium disodium EDTA
calcium hydroxide
cetyl alcohol
dimethicone
flavors
glycerin
lanolin
lauric acid
mineral oil
myristic acid
oleic acid
palmitic acid
paraffin
petrolatum
polyglyceryl-3 diisostearate
potassium hydroxide
purified water
SD alcohol
silica
sodium hydroxide
sodium saccharin
stearyl alcohol

Be aware of ingredients and allergies.  If you are allergic to any of the ingredients listed do not use that product.  A small amount of an ingredient you are allergic to applied to an open sore can seriously negatively affect your good intentions and cause more pain.