Cold sore relief is sought after by millions of herpes victims every year. There are many treatments that are time-proven to work quite well. There are also some treatments with wild claims that do nothing for cold sore relief.
Please do not waste any more money before you try these simple, proven tactics for relief of your cold sores.
Are you needing cold sore relief for a current outbreak?
Your primary desire is to reduce the irritating pain as soon as possible. The next step is to heal the sore fast, so you can get on with your life.
The herpes virus creates cold sores by destroying cells on the end of a nerve fiber. Your body will fight the virus causing headache problems, swelling of the target area, fever and the enlargement of lymph glands located below the jaw.
Most people start out by taking a pain and fever reducer such as aspirin, ibuprofen, or similar product. This will help to reduce fever and pain and give a small measure of cold sore relief.
Next - application of ice will help reduce pain, fever and swelling very quickly. Ice also slows down - or even stops - the herpes virus reproduction process.
Ice is available anywhere and basically free. But, ice is not always the most convenient for cold sore relief during certain situations, such as driving or working.
When the use of ice is not convenient for you, you may want to try a drug store comfort remedy for cold sores. Choose salves that offer pain deadening benzocaine or lidocaine.
These products will give some cold sore relief from the pain - by deadening the nerve endings. And they usually have ingredients that will protect your sore from bacterial infection.
Keep in mind, however, that most of these products only provide comfort and do not speed healing of the sore. They often make big claims, but so far have not proven to actually shorten the duration of an outbreak.
Ice is probably one of the best remedies for stopping pain and reducing swelling and fever. But, once your sore blossoms open, your sore begins the healing stage. And ice will slow down this process. Cold drives healing blood away from the wound.
Applying warmth during the healing period will give you the best cold sore relief by helping to cure the outbreak fast.
Hot water applied with a cloth will help. A warm, wet tea bag is a better choice. The tea contains ingredients that give excellent cold sore relief - by speeding up the healing process.
It is extremely important, while in the healing stages, to keep the sore clean by sterilizing with alcohol or hydrogen peroxide. Use throwaway cotton balls or paper towels for this purpose. Also, apply olive or oregano oil to keep the scab soft.
It is much easier to prevent new cold sores than to heal current ones. Prevention of herpes sores should be your main goal after your current sore has healed.
Nearly a third of those who are infected with the herpes virus DO NOT get outbreaks because their immunity is strong. If you get multiple sores, you should strongly consider the following remedy.
A good quality vitamin supplement is one of the best Cold Sore Remedies.
Do not buy grocery store vitamins - the one or two per day variety. Go to a good vitamin store or go on-line. A good, complete formula will require at least four to six capsules per day to provide the proper quantities of essential nutrients.
Specifically, the vitamins and minerals you want in large quantities are beta-carotene, vitamins B, C, and E, calcium, magnesium and zinc.
For quick cold sore relief, use ice at the beginning, and warmth during healing. Keep the sore clean and the scab well oiled to avoid re-opening the wound by cracking.
To reduce or eliminate future outbreaks of cold sores, you will benefit greatly by boosting your immune system. To do this, eat more dark green vegetables. In addition, you really should be taking an excellent quality vitamin and mineral supplementation program for the best chance of cold sore relief.
