Thursday, December 4, 2008

How To Prevent and Treat Cold Sores The Natural Way!

By Tom Mulligan

It probably won't make you feel any better if you have one yourself, but cold sores are a very common problem. They're unsightly and most definitely uncomfortable. However, you can reduce the length of time a cold sore stays there with some simple steps and you can also prevent them from showing up at all.

On its own, it usually takes eight to ten days for a cold sore to heal without any intervention from you. That's longer than most people want to wait, especially because cold sores have bad timing - it seems you always get one right before a major event! To reduce the healing time, there are a few tips and tricks you can use. However, one of the biggest helps is understanding how a cold sore works.

You can't cure cold sores per se, since they are a viral (herpes simplex) infection. The infection can't be treated with antibiotics; but you can treat the symptoms and make your cold sores go away faster, even prevent them.

While you can't cure the viral infection, you can help to prevent outbreaks by taking some simple steps. You can also heal outbreaks in as little as 24 hours in many cases. This is why we started this website in the first place ? we know how inconvenient cold sores can be and want to help everyone fight off these annoyances.

Every year, about forty million people are affected by cold sores appearing on or around the mouth. There are a lot of things that can cause a break out, but at its simplest, a cold sore is caused by a strained immune system. That means that if you have anything that's causing your immune system to be more compromised than usual - a cold, stress, fatigue, sleeplessness, a change in hormones or even eating badly lately - you have an increased likelihood of a breakout.

Cold sores start with feelings of itching or tingling. Then the area will redden and swell, resulting in the eruption of the sore itself. The sore usually goes through an oozing stage, then dries up and forms a thin scab. Of course, if you bite the sore, break through it, or are prone to scratching, you could do more damage and cause it to take longer to heal.

Most of us would rather not use costly prescription medications to treat our cold sores. Besides, these medications don't work any better than home remedies in a lot of cases and you'll have to go to your doctor to get them. You can use home remedies to get rid of your cold sores quickly.

A cold sore can be kept at bay with vitamin C, which is very helpful in strengthening your immune response. Aloe vera gel and lip balm can help keep your cold sore from splitting and L-Lysine can be used to promote rapid healing.

To prevent cold sores, take good care of yourself. Watch your diet, and get enough sleep. Be on the lookout for these sores if you've been feeling ill or tired - take extra measures to treat yourself well. Hopefully, you'll be able to avoid these inconvenient blemishes entirely!

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