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Cold Sore Relief: Top Natural Remedies

The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.
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Artificial Sweetener Link to Herpes

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Posted by Tara (Columbia MD) on 05/24/2006

I totally agree that aspartame can trigger outbreaks. I love yogurt which I eat daily. When I went on this website, I see where it says avoid aspartame. I usually don't have outbreaks often but since I have been eating yogurt I noticed more frequent outbreaks. I didn't know why these outcoming were coming back but now I see why.

Artificial Sweetener Link to Herpes
Posted by Kay (NJ) on 04/02/2006

I have been dieting for 6 weeks now. I usually use organic sugar, but switched to Splenda. My outbreaks and constant prodrome were unbelievable. I normally get about 4-6 outbreaks a year. I must have had 4 in one month. After reading about Splenda and herpes, I can only conclude this is the reason.

Artificial Sweetener Link to Herpes
Posted by Lyn (Orange City, FL) on 02/10/2006

i drink a lot of unsweetened tea and add sweet and low. i also drink a lot and i mean a lot of diet products and my outbreaks are one right after another. my doctors are stunned. i'm gonna try going without to see if it works. i will let you know!

Artificial Sweetener Link to Herpes
Posted by Chanel (Des Plaines IL) on 02/07/2006

I am glad I came upon this website because I just started drinking the new diet cherry vanilla dr pepper and that morning felt my lip itching and it has been years since I have had a cold sore. I did not realize it was from this drink.

Artificial Sweetener Link to Herpes
Posted by Walley (Spring Valley) on 01/22/2006

I recently started chewing sugarless gum because of a low carb diet. I experienced one of my worst herpes outbreaks in years around that same period, it may be related to aspartame.

Artificial Sweetener Link to Herpes
Posted by Angela (Portland, Maine) on 01/13/2006

I never drink diet sodas, or even soda in general, last night I had diet coke. I'm usually a more natural person. I've never had a cold sore in my life, overnight I developed a blood blister on my lip. I am very worried about it. I hope this is not a start to a very bad thing. I wish I would have known that these sweeteners do this before. Spread the word!

Artificial Sweetener Link to Herpes
Posted by Mary (Chicago, IL) on 01/07/2006

Ok, yesterday I had lunch with a friend. I asked her to bring me a diet something. It was COKE or Pepsi. Later that evening around 8pm. I felt the sensation of an outbreak. This was not oral. I cannot believe what I have just read. Thank you for the information. I will never drink or eat anything containing a sugar substitute.

Artifiical Sweetener Link to Herpes

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Posted by Teresa (Texas, USA) on 10/11/2021
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I had not had a cold sore outbreak for it seems like years, but yesterday I chewed 1 stick of sugarfree gum and I have the biggest outbreak happening now....about 12 to 18 hours after exposure. I will definitely be more careful in the future.

Aspirin

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Posted by Bill (Calgary, Alberta) on 11/27/2009
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To shorten the duration and size of cold sores, use ASA. Put a tablet on a spoon, then a drop of water to make a paste. Put it on the sore (you will feel it tingle). The ASA will dry up. Just keep putting it on. It will reduce redness and shorten the out break quickly. I use this when at home and instead of going out with a big white mass on my lip, I just brush it off and the sores are almost invisible. I have fewer outbreaks since I stopped drinking soda. I thank others on this site for that gem, as I used to get outbreaks every spring and late fall, signaling a weather change usually within a month.

EC: ASA is the acronym for acetylsalicylic acid, or ASPIRIN.

Aspirin, St. John's Wart, Tea Tree Oil

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Posted by K (New York, New York) on 12/27/2007
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This Works on Contact. Remove the top skin from the cold sore/herpes simplex. Ground Aspirin with 2 drops or tea tree oil (organic) and 2 drops of St. John's Wart liquid form (organic). If your a baby and you can't take pain you can numb it with Ambersol. It will kill the virus on site. It will form a scab immediately, stops the oozing, itching and swelling.

Astringent Toner

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Posted by Juliana (Calgary, Canada) on 08/22/2008
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I got Cold Sore while camping this summer. I have no clue how I got it, could be from sharing cups or from the grass. I felt the tingle on my upper lip while returning home. I went to see the doctor immediately. The doctor recommended acyclovoir cream, but I don't find it very effective. However, the nurse told me to wet a cotton ball with alcohol and rub around the lips for 5 minutes. I didn't have alcohol at home by then, so I used my toner instead, because there are alcohol in my toner. I felt comfortable using toner since I used then after washing my face everyday anyways. I wet the cotton part of bandage with Astringent Toner and stick the bandage on the bump. I repeated this about 3-4 times daily for two days, and my cold sore disappeared! The toner I used is called Garnier Pure - Astringent Toner - Tighten Pores. You can get it almost anywhere.

Replied by Joyce
(Joelton, Tn)
08/23/2008
490 posts

Hi Juliana, For future reference for your herpes simplex (cold sore), when you first notice that tingling feeling that heralds a budding cold sore, start taking L-lysine 2 grams (200 mgms) 4 times a day and you will find it drying up by the next day. I have found L-lysine effective against all viruses that I have tried it for to date.

Replied by Joyce
(Joelton, Tn)
08/26/2008
490 posts

To correct error in L-lysine for Herpes Simplex or cold sore. Should read 2 grams or (2000mgm) four times per day.

Replied by Surfcity
(Orange County, Ca)
12/06/2010
★☆☆☆☆

WARNING!

When rubbing anything on a coldsore NEVER break it open. I made the mistake of my life in thinking I could break open a very small cold sore with a Qtip and rubbing alcohol thinking it would kill everything and dry it up. WRONG! It spread across my lip and up to the bottom of my nose, with my lip swelling to at least twice it's normal size. It was extremely painful and embarrassing.

Avoid Arginine

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Posted by Barbiec1953 (Vienna, Virginia) on 10/05/2011
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An imbalanced ratio of arginine: lysine will cause Herpes Simplex/Cold Sore/Fever Blister breakouts. Try to eat your arginine foods as little as possible... And stop them altogether as soon as you feel the tingling.

Replied by beverly
(usa)
10/29/2023
★★★★★

I may have solved my own mystery.............I rarely get fever blisters but have changed my diet to Keto due to my husband being diagnosed with Parkinsons. One of the things I started doing was getting high fat yogurt, cream, buttermilk and keifer from a nearby dairy. The past month I have been constantly plagued with fever blisters at the corners of my mouth and nostrils.

Certain Foods

Consuming arginine-rich foods – such as beans, meat, chocolate and dairy – can trigger or worsen a cold sore. This is because arginine is required for the virus to replicate. Acidic foods and beverages can also trigger a cold sore outbreak. This includes citrus fruits, tomatoes, orange juice and even soda.

Source

Avoid Caffeine

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Posted by Lou-lou (Adelaide, Sa) on 04/01/2010
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Hi, I have posted here before but not for oral herpes which I also suffer from. Mine occur on the inside or outside of my nose, sometimes extending towards my mouth. Needless to say, not a pretty site :( and I have battled for years to try and improve the sores asap. What I hadn't looked into much before though was how to avoid getting them in the first place. There are always triggers for things and our bodies try to tell us this by giving us a rash, or a sore or spots etc. I too have also found a link with artificial sweeteners but what I have discovered through my own testings is CAFFEINE! It's a huge NO NO, well at least for me. I have cut out all caffeine products such as coffee, chocolate, coke etc. I loved all 3 but the alternative (a sore) is not worth it. I have found a coffee substitute called Caro and there is also one called Ecco. They are a cereal beverage and are sold in supermarkets right next to coffee. I usually mix that with decaf coffee. There is still caffeine in decaf but a very low percentage. I used to get outbreaks just about every month. I have been sore-free for 3 months now and counting :) Also as most of you would know, both Lysine and Arginine are amino acids. Most, if not all foods have each of these in them. Lysine is good for us herpes sufferers but arginine is very bad. Nuts, especially peanuts are at the top of the list for arginine properties. I printed a list from the web of foods high in arginine. The key is to ensure your diet has far more lysine. Plain yogurt and cheese top the list there. Also important is to know that the ratio of lysine in a food far out weighs the arginine content. If you don't think you are getting enough lysine, then you can always take a supplement. If any of you out there are staph carriers and suffer from severe infections around the nose towards the mouth area, I have an idea about that too so let me know if you are interested.

Replied by Julie
(Boston, Ma)
11/07/2011
★★★★★

I agree, I gave up caffeine for a few months for other reasons and noticed I didn't have any cold sore breakouts.

Replied by Stephanie
(Bendigo, Australia)
12/15/2011

I have suffered coldsores since I was 2 months old. I have found that I can greatly reduce the frequency of them if I totally avoid Oranges. I recently discovered that if I eat even the smallest hint of orange I WILL the next day have 1 to 6 coldsores around my mouth.

When I spoke to my doctor about this he told me it was a food allergy. Like how some people have anaphylaxis over nuts, I have coldsores from oranges. I don't only have cold sores from oranges but I also get them before I get sick, when I am sick, when I am tired and when I am stressed. I find overdosing on lysine can help as well as applying peppermint oil or this foreign cream called Yeao Paya Brand Balm that my uncle brought over from Thailand (I think). (it contains camphor, cinnamon oil, menthol, peppermint oil, eucalyptus oil and olive oil. ) I find this cream burns the skin around the coldsores and builds a thin scab where the coldsores is and stops the burning and itching as it kills it from the outside.

Avoid Citric Acid

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Posted by Kim (San Jose, Ca) on 09/03/2010
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While I don't have a cure for cold sores, I discovered what causes a breakout on my upper lip. I recently found out that I have a cousin in another country that has a break when she eats too many tomatoes. So I decided to keep track of what I ate, when I have my breakouts. It turns out that citric acid was the culprit. I noticed that when I drink too much orange juice, cranberry juice, soda, or eat tomato sauce, I get a cold sore. Any one item does not cause me to break out, but ingesting multiple items in one day or over a few days will result in a painful breakout that lasts about three weeks. Now, I very seldom get a cold sore, and when I do, I realize that I was not careful about what I ate, especially when it is often used as an additive is foods, like most sodas, jellies, sour dough bread, etc. I thought I would pass this information on, in case it helps someone else prevent or reduce future cold sore break outs, as they are painful and embarrassing.

Replied by Kingkevin
(Macomb, Illinois)
06/20/2011

Thanks definitely going to give it a try. I drink TONS of mt. Dew on a daily basis, it's practically what I live on. I've concluded it IS something I do on a daily basis considering since I was infected six months ago nearly not one week has gone by that I haven't got one. I absolutely am the most vein person in the world, and am not at a job I can just continuously take time off. I've considered quitting my job over the situation, which would leave NO way to pay bills... But it's that bad I consider it almost evey day. Fortunately I'm with the woman I'm going to marry, but it's still unsettling. I seriously am breaking down. As soon as the excitement of confidence is coming back because one healed, another pops up. I can't take it much more! Thanks for your info...

Replied by Kangroo
(Chicago, Il)
06/28/2011

Definitely! I have had the same experience with orange juice and cranberry juice. They definitely cause more outbreaks.

Use Campho-Phenique (walgreens) all around your lip every four hours during the day and before sleeping to stop outbreaks there. Then, for when blisters may appear ON your lip, pour some 3% hydrogen peroxide (walgreens) in a tablespoon and soak the blisters in it for 10 minutes every half hour until you notice shrinkage in the blisters. Visually inspect the blisters every half hour, if they seem to be growing, soak in the 3% solution again for 15 minutes, but if they have stopped growing, soak again in the solution for 10 minutes every 2 or 3 hours. This should help kill the blisters that are ON your lip in about 24 hours. The blisters that appear ON your lip (the purple area) are the hardest one to treat, but with practice you will get better and better at it and pretty soon you'll get the situation under control.

Replied by Timauthee
(Dallas, Tx)
09/06/2013

Thanks! For cold sores I tried ALL of the home remedies, heavy drugs and L Lysine for prevention for years..... Nothing worked. Read here and on the genital herpes site that Orange, Grapefruit and Cranberry Juice causes outbreaks. Past years would have on average of 8 major occurrences per year. Stopped drinking these juices and had 1 minor occurrence in the past 2 years (side-note, the last two years have been anything but stressless so its not due to a low stress levels)."

Avoid Orange, Grapefruit, and Cranberry Juices

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Posted by Timauthee (Dallas, Tx) on 09/04/2013
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Cold Sores: Tried ALL of the home remedies, drugs and L Lysine for prevention..... Nothing worked. Read on the genital herpes site that Orange, Grapefruit and Cranberry Juice causes outbreaks. Past years would have on average of 8 major occurrences per year. Stopped drinking these juices and had 1 minor occurrence in the past 2 years (side-note, the last two years have been anything but stressless so its not due to a low stress levels).


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