treatment for cold sores

Home Remedies as Treatments for Cold Sores

If you’re one of the millions of people in the world who are susceptible to recurring bouts of cold sores, you know how painful they can be. These annoying little sores can itch and burn, and we all think of them as being much larger and more prominent on our faces than they really are. Once you have the very contagious virus that causes cold sores in your body, it’s likely you’ll suffer from the sores periodically all throughout your life, because cold sores can’t be cured. There are a lot of medications available over-the-counter that you can purchase to help control the symptoms. However, there are also home remedies that you can use as treatments for cold sores that are much cheaper and thought to work just as well.

One of the main home treatments for cold sores is the use of ice. Just as soon as a cold sore starts to tingle on your lip, apply ice. It is believed that ice will lower the tissue temperatures in the area where the sore is forming, slow down the metabolic rate, and keep the sore from forming to the extent it would have if left untreated. In addition, if a cold sore has already developed, ice treatments can be used to control the annoying itching and burning sensations that bother most sufferers, because it provides a numbing effect.

If you read the labels, you’ll find numerous cold sore medications which list tannic acid as one of their active ingredients. This ingredient is used because it has properties that will discourage the growth of viruses (such as the virus that causes cold sores). People who are in the know, however, realize that common, black household tea also contains tannic acid. Therefore, if you start feeling a cold sore tingle, you can place a moistened teabag on your lip to help discourage the formation of a lesion. If you do this for a few minutes each hour, the cold sore shouldn’t become as large as it would have without treatment.

Once a cold sore actually develops, there isn’t much you can do to help the situation. The best you can hope for is that by applying a heavy moisturizer, such as petroleum jelly, you’ll be able to keep the lesion supple so that it won’t eventually crack and bleed.