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.
Garlic
Posted by Anon (Australia) on 07/04/2013
★★★★★
YEA to garlic, ice and honey for cold sores. I tend to get cold sores on my lips when I'm run-down and haven't been sleeping and/or eating very well. I usually don't get a tingling sensation until after the little monster rears it ugly head, the only sign I have to go off is dry, chapped lips, which can easily be attributed to the winter weather.
Noticed the tiny, tingly/itchy bump when I woke up a yesterday and freaked out because I'm volunteering at a week-long event starting tomorrow and didn't want a massive blister in the centre of my bottom lip. I usually use Zovirax but that usually takes over a week to heal and even then has left small blemishes/scars.
I read on another site about the garlic remedy and decided to test it out. Cut a clove of garlic in half and crushed it to release the juices, then held it over the bump for about thirty seconds. Burned like no tomorrow, but the tingling sensation was gone and never came back. Once the burning sensation had died, I soaked some paper towel and dabbed it clean before applying honey. Repeated every few hours. Next day, no blister! Just a small scab that's a good half or third the size of my usual sores.
Came here to see what other natural remedies could be added to the program, but I don't fancy the idea of popping or invading the wound to apply solutions for fear of infection and chemical solutions like acetone or hydrogen peroxide scare me. At any rate, I now use a clove of garlic, followed by a cube of ice, dab it dry and then add a touch of honey, applied every couple of hours. Swelling is pretty much non-existent and there is no tingling or itchiness at all. From the looks of things it'll be gone in a day or two! (Fastest recovery time ever! )
Acetone
Posted by Ed (Kent, Wa) on 06/16/2013
★★★★★
Acetone works. I am 59, and have suffered from cold sores all my life. The last 2 years were the worst. I get irritation in the right eye, then irritation around the nose as the early signs of a virus attack when my body immune system is week. One never knows the status of one's immune system, but sometimes there might be early signs.
I take Famciclovir when the irritation starts and apply apple cider vinegar to my lips at work, or Acetone with a cotton Q-tip at home. I figure the complicated use and smell of Acetone at work might draw the attention of co-workers.
Here is what I have learned,
1- Stress life is present all the time.
2- Acidic foods help virus activation.
3- Do not eat fruits or too much meat. Meats including fish and specially shell fish are very acidic. Fruits are acidic and have lots of sugar that contributes to virus activation and growth.
4- Do not drink coffee or tea. Do not eat chocolate.
5- Do not eat animal products more than 3 times a week.
6- Eat green leafy and root vegetables.
7- Lime or lime juice is the best. Include a lime in your daily diet.
8- Eat a cucumber and a tomato every day, or make a cucumber, tomato and onion salad with a fresh lime juice and some cayenne pepper part of you daily diet.
Garlic
Posted by Fae (Santa Rosa, Ca) on 06/11/2013
★★★★★
The juice of fresh raw garlic clove applied topically stops a cold sore dead in its tracks! Results are felt instantly. I've tried many of the natural Earth Clinic remedies for cold sores (ice, peroxide, L-lysine, nail polish remover, etc. ) with varying degrees of success so when I say it works almost immediately, I am speaking from experience! As soon as you feel that dreaded tingle or see any sign of the blister, peel a raw clove, nick the end to release the juices (or smash it in a garlic press) and apply to the sore. Hold it on there for about 15 seconds. It will sting like a sonuva..but that is the garlic juice doing its job and is actually a satisfying sensation. I usually only have to do this 2 or 3 times within an hour or two, holding it on there for about 15 seconds each time (any longer and the strong juice may irritate the skin) and the virus inside the cold sore dies or retreats. You can feel it! Any physical damage the cold sore has caused will have to heal in it's own time which is why it's best to catch it before there is any visible sign but even when I had a big red swollen bubble, it flattened within an hour, dried up and flaked off within a day or so. Instantly effective and dependable! I have read that garlic is a strong anti-viral and it is now my only cold sore treatment. I love Earth Clinic and wanted to share this simple but effective cold sore cure.
Honey
Posted by Garion (New York, Ny) on 05/04/2013
★★★★☆
Honey usually works when I catch the cold sore during that "tingling" stage. But, just recently I think the sun did me in and 2 days later I broke out. I could fill my lip getting swollen and irritated and see it being red but I was at work and didn't have the honey available. I got home and did the honey but by the next day, full on blisters. I was applying the honey but it was too late. And the cold sore is now progressing thru the states.
So, for honey to work, for me, I need to catch it right at the tingling stage. Or else it seems it's too late.
Avoiding The Sun
Posted by Maremarecalif (Concord, Ca) on 04/19/2013
★★★★☆
For years I would get cold sores and I could not figure out why.. I'm 70yrs now and about 5 years ago the answer came.. It was the sun that brought them on for me... I am fair skin and I have a large lot.. I do all the yard work , that includes making patios with pavers, digging up sewer pipes etc... The days I'm in the sun too long, the next day I will feel bumps next to my lips and I know whats coming Blisters... So now I do most of my yard work late in the day or very early in the am.. If I do get one, I use camphor.
Red Marine Algae, L-Lysine
Posted by Kristine (Rome, Italy) on 04/18/2013
Red Marine Algae (difficult to find outside of the USA) and L-Lysine taken in the early stages of a heperes outbreak works wonders, even regarding furture break-outs!
L-Lysine
Posted by Cs (Sg, Sgp) on 04/16/2013
★★★★★
I've tried just about everything. Lysine is the only thing that works.
Artificial Sweetener Link to Herpes
Posted by Art 1a. (Vancouver BC, Canada) on 04/05/2013
I have been off artificial sweeteners for some time now. The other day being 5 days ago I went out to mow the grass. I had a bottle of flavored water 1/2 full sitting in my cup holder. It had been there for 7 months since the last time I use the tractor. I drank it like I have done before, after all it, s just flavored water and it still tasted pretty good. The cap was on tight and the garage is cold. Anyway I got a Cold Sore 2 hours later on my upper lip. Now any time before if I was to hold my keys with my teeth and the key touched my lower lip I would get a break out on that spot. So this must be some kind of bacteria causing it.
I am taking BHT for another problem but it does not help with this. So I guess the next time I will try the ACV trick and see if that does the trick.
art 1a.
Licorice and Peppermint Root Extract
Posted by Jazzz (Delta Junction, Alaska, Usa) on 03/19/2013
★★★★☆
While I have yet to find any success curing my cold sores, I have found one particular thing which prevents them.
It seems that certain remedies work well for one type of person but not the other, in the past I have tried Lysine, over the counter meds (they worked for a while), ice cubes, finger nail polish remover.... Ummm just about everything. Non of those worked well for me, for the past three years I have been using a licorice/peppermint root extract in gelled form. When I feel a cold sore coming on and I use this (I apply it every several hours at the onset) it never comes, I use this if I know I might get a cold sore (I'm sick or something), and I use this on my son. Unfortunetly, he doesn't know when a cold sore is coming on so it is usually already surfaced by the time I see it. However, when I put it on him the cold sore goes away very quickly and stops growing. I have noticed that over the years my cold sores are getting farther apart. I use to get them about 8 times a year and now its about 3-4.
If nothing else has worked for you, this might be the one- because nothing ever worked for me!
Acetone
Posted by Lilli (Kenmore, Wa) on 03/15/2013
★★★★★
My thanks for another wonderful and effective remedy from the Earth Clinic forum.
Every time I have a cold I get a runny nose. From all the wiping and irritation I develop a cold sore... In my nose!!! They are always painful and last a long time. I tried all the OTC products, they only cover up the sore and keep it moist; the exact opposite of what I should have been doing.
A few days ago, I took a q-tip and swabbed all the small blisters in my nose with acetone. I did this once an hour for 3-4 hours. The first thing I noticed was that the throbbing pain went away. I continued to apply the acetone throughout the day. Before bedtime, most blisters had dried up. I applied it once more before I went to bed. Then next day there were no more blisters.
Three days later, the skin is a bit red and needs to heal. I am using a combination of 100% aloe covered with antibiotic salve because I still have the cold and want to protect the area.
Thanks again for the great advice!
Ketogenic Diet
Posted by Cedar (Boston, Massachusetts) on 03/06/2013
★★★★★
I am a female who used to get herpes outbreaks one after another for two years. I was very frustrated, I tried everything from Chinese Herbs, Ayurvedic Herbs, Urotherapy, ACV, De-worming, acetone. I was following a vegetarian diet and jogged regularly. Nothing worked for me, and I would get outbreaks every two weeks, which each took two weeks to heal, so, "continuously" one after another.. I would get fever-ish, weak, depressed, get nerve pains up and down my legs that felt like shingles.. It was awful!
I decided to stop all cardio for a month and do resistance training (Jamie Eason's LiveFit trainer to be exact.. Free online program), and follow a ketogenic diet (high fat, moderate protein, low carb), and all of a sudden, no outbreaks or pains for 6 months.
Colloidal Silver, Coconut Oil
Posted by Alakhi (Livingston, Mt) on 02/20/2013
Try DMSO, it really works on cold sores!
Colloidal Silver, Coconut Oil
Posted by Gonna Try Again (Fort Lauderdale, Fl, Usa) on 02/20/2013
★★★★★
Read on EarthClinic about both Monolaurin and Collodial Silver (CS) for cold sore, and fiqured that I would give it a shot. For about a month, I took CS five times daily and two coconut oil supps each time I took the CS. That was a year ago (Should note that I can go years between a cold sore). This weekend was a bit cold and I may have also had an allergic reaction to orange juice which caused my lips to burn/itch. I put Carmex on it and today woke up with a small cold sore. It is so small that it is barely visible. I added some topical CS and it is already drying up.
Obviously a month of CS and coconut oil supplements did not cure the virus, but I cant deny that this is probably the smallest coldsore I have had in a while. So I'm going to try taking the CS and supps longer to see if it will finally go away FOREVER!!
Garlic
Posted by Anonymous (Nc) on 02/08/2013
★★★☆☆BETTER BUT WITH SIDE EFFECTS
Garlic works. However, garlic will eat up the infected area and leave a hole! I used garlic for a boil under my arm and it left me with a hole. The skin grew back but it was not pretty. Be careful with garlic. Very potent stuff!
Vitamin C
Posted by Neukoln (Edinburgh, Scotland, Uk) on 02/08/2013
This is a fabulous result, and I know it will help lots of people.
I was taking vitamin C in similar doses and still got cold sores - at least once a month, for over 15 years. It was only when I started taking 1000mg of lysine powder, on an empty stomach first thing in the morning that they finally stopped. I've been doing that for 5 years - and the only time I've had one was when I went I ran out for 3 weeks. It's important that lysine is taken on an empty stomach because otherwise it is mixed with amino acids in food to make protein. It's tasteless and dissolves easily, so mixing it with water is fine.
Vitamin C
Posted by Jamie (Los Angeles, California) on 02/07/2013
★★★★★
Hi! I just wanted to share my whole life I've suffered from having annoying cold sores right on my face and a couple years ago I found why I got them in the first place and how to stop them. I did some research and found out since cold sores are a virus, they can be counter-acted by boosting up your immune system. I guess I must've just had a weak immune system for my life and so a couple years ago I started taking 500-1000mg Vitamin C per day and have not gotten them since! At one point I lazed off from taking the vitamin c, and what do you know I got one again! But as soon as I noticed it/ felt it I took about 3000 mg Vitamin C per day and it disappeared! My self confidence is so much higher now and I feel way better myself and no more stress/worrying about when I'm going to get one!
Royal Jelly
Posted by Amy (Metro Detroit, Michigan, USA) on 01/31/2013
★★★★★
To my surprise, this worked really well. I just applied it several times a day and it went away.
Ice
Posted by Anon (Anon) on 01/19/2013
Hi, another remedy that I have noticed if you have no lysine to hand or ice is to rub geny a piece of silver jewellry over the sore (b4 breakout) you will get a slight grey mark from the silver coming off but it will halt the infection - silver heals.
Ice
Posted by Mundaring Merrin (Perth, Western Australia) on 01/18/2013
★★★★★
THANK YOU! There I was on a camping holiday in the great Aussie Outdoors, a tingling sensation heralding the cold sore. Same spot as usual. I'd forgotten lysine supplement for a couple of weeks and was somewhat stressed due to a handful of late nights. Recalled the ice remedy & decided to try it. Thank God, it worked! Slight redness but no other evidence.
Manuka Honey
Posted by Sms27 (Princeton, Nj, Usa) on 01/14/2013
★★★★★
Manuka honey applied topically on the lip helps diminish the virus outbreak and significantly shortens the healing time. The trick is to keep the honey on for as long as possible until the sore heals. To clean use witch hazel.
General Feedback
Posted by Bess (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) on 01/08/2013
Hi Gerrit - You mentioned that you would prefer using a roll-on for transdermal magnesium oil.
I apply magnesium oil (homemade) by refilling an old deodorant bottle. I pop off the top part (that contains the ball) with the thin part of a dull knife. Then I fill it with magnesium oil, add a few drops of essential oil and use that. I found it works much better than spraying it on. I even found glass deodorant bottles at London Drugs (just empty the contents which are full of chemicals). Hope that helps and good health to you!
General Feedback
Posted by Gerrit (Abbotsford, Bc, Canada) on 01/08/2013
Gina I want you to know that I take
35 drops of Lugol's 5% in divided doses daily.
I been taking all kinds of Iodine for the last couple of years started slowly with very little.
The info I can find is, if you overdose water starts dripping from your nose and like too much vit C you just pee it out. I'm 83 and still around. I take it for Hypothyroid and still can't get my basil temp over 97. 5 and if I paint it on in the AM it is gone by nightfall.
The same with magnesium oil I have to take lot's of it spray it right in my mouth wish I could find a refillable deoderent applyer so I could roll it on also, I have to take it otherwise I would get foot and leg cramps during the night.
As always do your own DD this is just one man's opinion.
May the Lord continue to bless THIS EC site and its supporters and Angels like Lisa etc.
General Feedback
Posted by Gina (New York, NY) on 01/08/2013
★☆☆☆☆WARNING!
20 drops a day of 5% lugol's iodine? Are you kidding me? I hope that is a typo as this is an overdose with serious side effects!! Please... This is a dangerous recommendation. 2-3 drops a day is more realistic.
General Feedback
Posted by Candy (Brooklyn, Ny, United States) on 01/08/2013
Kilgore from Jackson... have u taken a blood test and it proved you are cured from HSV1 and 2?
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Rea (Terrytown, Nj) on 12/22/2012
ACV is actually alkalizing.
Acetone
Posted by Lloyd (Charlotte, Nc) on 12/18/2012
Wow Artemesia if you know the exact location "where the virus resides" or words to that effect, you're the perfect candidate for a topical application of colloidal silver to kill the infection. Apply the silver solution to a white paper towel and for good penetration add a few drops of DMSO (penetrant, solvent and carrier) and press onto the site for fifteen minutes. Do this three times over three days. The paper towel needs to be fairly wet... two tablespoons of the colloidal silver.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Posted by Lee (Blenheim, New Zealand) on 12/17/2012
★★★★★
I can not reccommend Hydrogen peroxide enough! I had my first ever break out of cold sores on my bottom lip, it started as one then ended up having 4, my lip was a mess and showed no signs of improving it just kept scabbing then cracking. I went and got Hydrogen peroxide 6% (but im sure 3% or whatever one you can get would work) and I put it on every time I looked in the mirror or remembered about it -the more the better! (I also started taking L-lysine and olive leaf extract but I know it was the hydrogen peroxide that made the big difference) then within only 2 days my lips were 90% better!!!! It kills the virus, dries up the blisters/scabs and heals it but without it getting so dry that it cracks. If my lips did feel a little dry I just put some coconut oil on them and it worked so so well! Had to come back on here and reccommend to anyone who is going through what I have just been through. USE HYDROGEN PEROXIDE!! :)
Oregano Oil
Posted by Sue M. (Worden, Il, USA) on 12/16/2012
★★★★★
My "cold sore" outbreaks consist of naturally the lip pustules, but also I have the bad headache, body aches and pain and so very tired.... Flu like symptoms. At the first sign of an outbreak, I would take lysine and it would help lessen the symptoms by 25%, but I was looking for a prevention to the outbreaks that I could take on a day by day basis. That's when I read about the Oil of Oregano. Got my first bottle on the 6th and used 2 drops under my tongue for 10 to 15 seconds, followed by a large glass of warm water. I had a cold sore come up on Friday (14th) and immediately increased my drops to 3 and put the oregano directly on the lip (up to 3 to 4x's a day). My symptoms were cut, I would say, by 75% to what they used to be. I had about 1/2 day of downtime, compared to 3 days before and my lip stayed contained to the cold sore and no swelling like I usually get. I did do the lysine on the 1st and 2nd day, but I really attribute the scaling down of my cold sore issues to the Oil of Oregano. To compensate for it taking iron out of my system, I just drink a tbs of blackstrap molasses to warmed almond milk every other day. There are so many benefits to taking this..... I found alot of information on so many sites. Hope this helps someone.
General Feedback
Posted by Vitaminjunkie (Marietta, Georgia) on 12/15/2012
Try the oil of oregano! Take one 1500 mg. Capsule once a day for 4 or 5 months. You can also use the oil of oregano that comes in a bottle with a dropper for the actual sores during an outbreak. The only caveat is that oil of oregano can interfere with iron absorption so if you are a menstruating female you should take an iron supplement several hours before or after the oil of oregano. THIS STUFF WORKS.
Iodine
Posted by Candy (Brooklyn, Ny United States) on 12/13/2012
Are you completely healed from herpes or the symtoms are gone?
Acetone
Posted by Micah (Augusta, Ga) on 12/08/2012
★★★★★
I've used the acetone nail polish remover method twice in the last year. The first time I used it I had already had the cold sore on my lip for three days so it was pretty gnarly looking but I went ahead and did the acetone treatment anyway and it was almost 100 % healed within a few days when normally it would have taken two weeks. This time, I used the acetone as soon as I felt the cold sore and two days later its almost completely healed. It never got huge and super red and scabby. I am definitely a huge fan of this method.
L-Lysine
Posted by Sherry (Vancouver, Bc) on 12/08/2012
RA and Mania are both tied to gluten intolerance. It has incredible systemic reactions. Do some research and get him off gluten and dairy. It'll make the world of difference.
General Feedback
Posted by Susan (USA) on 12/07/2012
Thanks a lot but did u get re-tested for HSV-1 and2?
General Feedback
Posted by Denise (Richmond, Va) on 12/07/2012
Glad to hear that your blemishes, scars and infection is gone. My question is have you gotten re-tested to see if the virus is still your blood?
Hydrogen Peroxide
Posted by Kilgore (Jackson, Ms) on 12/06/2012
Try iodine. I completely resolved my 7 year case in two months by taking 20 drops of 5% solution in coffe and milk. It works!
Acetone
Posted by Kilgore (Jackson, Ms) on 12/06/2012
Please try iodine for cold sores, 20 drops of the 5% solution in coffee or milk. Resolved my case in two months.
