Mouth Sores Treatment

Put on your Hazmat suit and prepare to be in solitary confinement for 7-10 days.  Okay, maybe that is a little overkill for not catching or infecting anyone with the Herpes Simplex 1 virus.

The fact is, lip sores are extremely contagious.  They are most contagious when the blisters are opened and not scabbed yet.  The pus is the cold sore virus and when you have open mouth blisters this virus is available to contaminate the world.

You want to be sure to keep your hands very clean and be sure not to touch at your mouth.  This can be difficult since you are probably self-conscious of your lip sore and it is easy to touch at the area subconsciously, please try not to do this.

Wash your hands and carry sanitizer with you while you are suffering with a cold sore outbreak.  Clean hands will prevent you from spreading the virus to others and it will also protect you from reinfecting yourself.

Be very careful not to touch, scratch or rub at your eyes after touching your lip sore.  Having the Herpes Simplex 1 virus in your eye is dangerous and can cause blindness.

You can transmit the cold sore virus by kissing and by oral sex!  Don’t share chap stick, towels, beverage glasses, or eating utensils-unless you are trying to pay back someone for giving you a cold sore.

It is especially important to stay away from the elderly, infants and ill people when you have contagious lip sores.  These people are especially susceptible to the virus and could end up getting very ill if they are exposed and contract a lip sore.  With a low immune system their bodies don’t have the ability to fight off the virus and therefore they get extremely sick and may have multiple out breaks.

You’ve had cold sores before and the last thing you want is a repeat of that dreadful experience. We all hate them.

The sad thing is, you can’t cure cold sores, also known as fever blisters.

But you can take steps to prevent cold sores and it’s best to know what triggers a lip sore outbreak for your body.

COMMON COLD SORE TRIGGERS

If you’re going to prevent new sores on your lips, get to know these common triggers that many of us don’t give enough credit to.

1. Stress: We all have too much stress in our lives. But when stress really gets to us, it’s common for a cold sore to erupt. Talk about adding wood to the fire.
2. Not Enough Sleep: The average adult should get at least 6-9 hours of sleep a night. If you’re not getting that much, you could be tempting a mouth sore to appear.
3. Overexposure to Sunlight: Too much sunlight or exposure to UV rays can dry out the skin and attach your lips. If you’re going to be in the sun for an extended period of time or in the tanning booth, make sure you use a lip balm to protect your lips.
4. Dry, Chapped Lips: Deal with chapped lips immediately. The last thing you want to do is create lip sores by not taking care of them.
5. Menstruation
6. Pregnancy
7. Fever: Getting a cold or flu can reduce your body’s hydration levels, which can spur fever blisters.

While not all of these causes of cold sores can be avoided, some of them can at least be addressed before it becomes too late. If you think you are about to have some mouth sores, it’s best to get prepared with some pain relievers and natural home remedies for mouth sores.

You want to know how to get rid of canker sores, and who can blame you. Lip sores of any creed are a huge pain.

While you can’t “cure mouth blisters” you can use several over-the-counter medicines to help get over these mouth sores quickly.

WHAT ARE CANKER SORES?

Canker Sores, also called mouth blisters, are small sores that appear on the inside of the mouth. Sometimes referred to as mouth ulcers, these sores can show up on the tongue, roof of the mouth, cheek and inside of the lip.

Here’s the kicker too, no one knows what causes mouth blisters.

Canker sores are not like cold sores, which only occur on the outside of the mouth and sometimes in the nose.

But like cold sores, mouth blisters are incredibly painful and very irritating. They typically last 1-2 weeks. You can choose from several medicines to help speed up the healing process.

BEST OTC CANKER SORES TREATMENT

The following medicines will help you heal blisters in the mouth:

Anbesol – A topical ointment that comes in a tube and can be applied for relieving pain from toothaches, canker sores, cold sores and even teething in babies.

Orajel – This medicine works on mouth blisters but is also heavily geared toward toothaches.

Orabase – Produced by Colgate, Orabase contains Benzocaine, which inhibits pain from recurring canker sores.

Zilactin-B – Mouth sore gel that works to form a bioadhesive barrier that covers the lip blister. It’s formulated to last as many as 6 hours with re-applying.

Have you used any of these medicines? Which one works best for you?

Canker sores are a real pain in the mouth. Fortunately there some simple diet changes you can make to avoid pain when you are suffering from them.  Also, improving your diet is a good way to prevent another mouth sores breakout in the future.

MY MOUTH SORE MAKES IT HURT WHEN I EAT

If you have a canker sore, avoid foods that are either very spicy or very salty.  Bland tasting foods are usually the best in general.  Also avoid foods which have citric acid in them (like orange juice) as they can irritate your canker sore.  A good way to dull the pain is to eat cold foods like ice cream or popsicles.

WHAT DIET CHANGES CAN I MAKE TO PREVENT MOUTH SORES

Foods high in the B vitamins can have a positive effect in reducing the occurrence of canker sores. If you notice that you your canker sores  usually occur after you eat or drink a lot of a certain type of food  (again, such as juices high in citric acid or extra salty or spicy food), you’ll want to make a mental note of this and avoid those foods in the future.

One last thing to keep in minds is that certain kinds of toothpastes and mouthwashes contain an ingredient known as Sodium Lauryl Sulfate. This ingredient has been associated with causing an increase in mouth sores breakouts for some people. So check to make sure that your toothpaste isn’t the reason for your canker sores.

Here’s to a healthy and pain-free smile!

Cold sores are painful sores on lips that are caused by the Herpes Simplex 1 Virus, or HSV-1. Cold sores are typically referred to as fever blisters, lip blisters, lip sores and mistakenly canker sores (cold sores are not canker sores).

Once contracted, cold sores will lie dormant in your nervous tissue. Everyone has certain lip sore triggers that will prompt a new sore to erupt.

Fever blisters can’t be cured but you can take steps to prevent cold sores and treat them to shorten their lifespan.

Cold Sore Signs and Symptoms

Here’s some things you should look for to identify lip sores:

• Tingling of the lips. This sometimes precedes lip blisters by 1-2 days.
• Small, hard bumps under the skin around the mouth
• Small and painful blisters filled with fluid on around the mouth. These blisters are often raised, red and very painful.

Cold sores last 7-14 days and can leave a lasting red bump for up to a month after a lip sore has erupted. They can also appear on your nostrils and sometimes inside your mouth.

After a cold sore has appeared, it will eventually break and release fluid. After that, the lip sore will crust over and will create a scab that can last for about 10 days.

Cold Sores Are Contagious

Cold sores brought on by HSV-1 are very contagious, especially during the period that they have erupted on your skin. It’s best to stay out of contact with others during this time and avoid touching you sore with with your fingers.

Do not share food, drinks, utensils or even towels with someone who has an open fever blister.

Cold sores are even contagious when they are not present, but spreading them during this time is rare.

Preventing Cold Sores

There are several steps you can take for preventing cold sores. To do so, you must know:

1. What are your cold sore triggers
2. How to prevent cold sores

Some simple steps to take include eating healthy foods, wearing sunblock and avoiding stress.

Cold Sores Treatment

If you have cold sores, you will want to take steps to make sure your body can deal with the pain and also shorten the lifespan of the cold sore.

Here’s some more resources for treating lip sores:

• The truth about Abreva ointment
• Cold Sore Pain Killers

Medical Attention Sometimes Required

Cold sores that last for more than two weeks can be cause for consulting a medical professional. Most cold sores will not need medical assistance, but if your symptoms are severe, you’ve had irritation in your eyes or you have a pre-existing condition that lowers your immune system, it’s best to get the help you need.

Many people often confuse Canker Sores with Cold Sores. While both are sores on lips, canker sores are often inside the lips, while cold sores primarily exist externally.

Cold sores, also called fever blisters, are caused by the Herpes Simplex 1 Virus (HSV-1). They usually appear as small, red, painful bumps on and around the lip area and sometimes nostrils. They rarely appear inside the mouth.

What Are Canker Sores?

Canker sores are small, painful sores inside the mouth that can either be red or have a white coating.

Canker sores most commonly appear on the soft tissue of the inside of your lips and cheeks and sometimes under your tongue. They can appear as a single mouth sore or as a small cluster of sores inside the mouth.

People in their 20s are most susceptible to canker sores, although anyone can experience them.

Are Canker Sores Contagious?

NO! Isn’t that great? Unlike cold sores, canker sores are mouth ulcers that do not spread from person to person.

It’s still a good idea to not share food and drinks while you are experiencing a canker sore, but you won’t infect another person if you do.

What Causes Canker Sores?

No one knows for sure what causes these mouth sores. Doctors have found that canker sores tend to run in families, but that they won’t spread from person to person.

Other experts suspect canker sores are linked to stress, nutrition deficiencies, hormones, menstruation and possibly the foaming agent found in some toothpastes and mouthwashes.

How To Treat Canker Sores

• Over-the-counter medicines are able to numb and reduce swelling of canker sores
• Use toothpaste and/or mouthwash that does not contain SLS
• Apply tea bags to the sores. Appropriate teas include green and black teas.

What To Avoid During Canker Sore Outbreaks

Spicy and acidic foods can irritate canker sores and make them last longer than you’d hope. Try to avoid those as well as any sharp foods that may aggravate and poke the mouth sores. Avoid anything that may irritate the canker sore, including brushing it with your toothbrush.

Can I Get A Cold Sore Inside My Mouth?

People rarely get the Herpes Simplex 1 virus inside their mouth.  It usually attacks the outside mouth region like the lips or the nose and chin area.  However, there have been occassions that cold sores have developed inside your mouth.  More likely though, if you have a sore inside your lip you have either bitten your lip and it is now infected or you have a canker sore.

Canker sores aren’t contagious.  Science doesn’t have an answer as to why we get sores inside our mouth like canker sores.

If you have a canker sore they can sting and make your whole mouth feel swollen.  Here are some things you can try to treat the sore inside your lip:

Don’t eat any acidic or spicy food. Once that type of food hits the open, white wound of your canker sore you are going to jump up in pain!  It will sting terribly so don’t eat oranges, pineapple, barbeque sauces or lemonade, etc. until the sore inside your lip has gone away.

It usually takes about 7-12 days for them to completely disappear.

Biting your cheek with your teeth or cutting it with a sharp piece of food like a tortilla chip can cause a canker sore to appear. Try not to bite the inside of your cheeks if you have a habit of doing that when you are nervous.  The abrasion is enough to bring on a canker sore.

Fatigue, stress and allergies all have a tendency to cause you to get canker sores.  It’s difficult to never be stressed, tired or allergic to something but if you pay attention to your body and you are prone to getting sores on the inside of your lip you will be able to tell why you are getting them.  If they erupt when you have been working hard and not sleeping well you will know that if you want to stop getting canker sores you will need to rest more often!

Having a pimple on your lip would be much easier to take care of than an actual lip sore if that lip sore is from the Herpes Simplex 1 virus.  If you have a pimple on your lip all you really have to do is wait for it to turn white, hold a warm washcloth on it and then give it a little squeeze to get rid of the pimple.

Lips have a large amount of nerve endings in them which makes them extremely sensitive to touch and temperature.  This means that lips are also incredibly sensitive to pain.  Since lips don’t have sweat glands or pores like the rest of your skin, they aren’t as susceptible to pimples.  However, the Herpes Simplex 1 virus feasts on the soft skin of your lips.

Lip sores can’t be cured like a pimple on lip because they are two completely different types of break outs.  A pimple isn’t a virus, it is a clogged pore.  A pimple also isn’t contagious, although it can feel like they are when they all come together at once.  You should never squeeze or pop lip sores in the way that you would a pimple.  This can cause your cold sore to become really irritated and that only causes more throbbing and burning for you to have to deal with.

Lip sores are highly contagious and they come from a virus known as the Herpes Simplex 1 virus.  Also, those who carry this virus in their system will always have it; there is no cure.  There are many ways to prevent lip sores and cold sores from happening just like there is for getting pimples.  However, the prevention does not always work and sometimes we break out no matter our attempts to stop it.

Check out my Cold Sore Freedom in 3 Days review to learn about cold sores and the secrets to treating them and getting them to go away forever!