What is the *EFFECTIVE* treatment for cold sores?

[Phoenix]

Help!! I am soooo *sick* of my cold sores!! I''ve had them for over 2 months now. First I didn''t even know what they were, just had cracks in the corners of my mouth, thought it was just dryness. I''d *never* had them before in my entire life. Then, they progressed into little blisters. I''ve tried Zovirax several times, have taken a course of Valavyclovir, thought it''d gone away and then woke up this morning with a blister on my bottom lip.

I am so fed up. It looks disgusting and I haven''t kissed my DH for 2 whole months. Am too scared to give anyone a peck on the cheeks, just in case. I am so worried it might transfer to "other areas (IYKWIM?!) if I am not careful with my bath towels after I wash.

Does anyone have any suggestion? I''ve been to the doctors about 5-6 times already and nothing seems to have worked!

HELP!!

Thank you.

 

[crown1]

try taking lysine. you can purchase it in the vitamin section. take 500-600 daily and double that during outbreaks.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

I''ve been plagued with cold sores since I was a child and I''ve tried just about everything. The fact that you''ve tried prescription meds to no success makes me think that it might not be cold sores at all. Have you considered a yeast infection? YIs can form blisters and they can hit anywhere there''s moisture on your body. Or maybe it started out that way and then the cold sores were triggered by it? I''m not sure what the treatment for this would be, I can''t imagine putting monistat on my mouth, but perhaps Difflucan pills would take care of it.

If they are, in fact cold sores, I find that valtrex works well, but I had to do one dose and then another one right after, and then for OTC meds I use Abbreva. I only used the valtrex once as I had an event I needed the sore gone for. In general I stick with the Abbreva and it works really well. I always have it in my purse because it definitely makes a difference when you put it on RIGHT at the first tingle.

Regardless, it''s concerning that you''ve had them for so long. I''d go see your doc again and ask for a more complete work-up. Viruses are opportunistic little buggers and there might be an underlying infection that your body is fighting. A weak immune system (from stress or whatever) opens up the possibilities for lots of things.

Good luck, my heart goes out to you, cold sores are no fun at all...

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

I just re-read your post. Definitely look into the weak immune system link. Try and knock down your stress level, take your vitamins, etc., and still go see your doctor.

Oh, and replace your chapsticks, lipsticks (anything that touches your lips and can't be sterilized), and THROW OUT YOUR TOOTHBRUSH!!! You may want to do the same with your hubbie's, because he could be asymptomatic (he has it but no symptoms) and he could be reinfecting himself and you as well.

 

[Haven]

I take a couple L-Lysine pills whenever I feel the tingle and that zaps them. They never even come to the surface.

I''m not sure if this is true, but one of my sisters also gets them, and we realized that we always get them after we eat peanut butter. Since we stopped with the PB, no cold sores.

 

[Circe]

Acyclovir. I take it whenever I feel one coming on (usually linked to stress, for me), and I made it almost two years without a cold sore until I left the house without my handy moving pharmacy one day at work this fall. That said, once a cold sore comes on, in my experience, nothing will make it conclude more quickly. The Zovirax stuff can make it less painful, butthey seem to work on their own schedule. That said, two months straight make me wonder if it''s something else, too - have you spoken to your doctor about this? I think Hudson Hawk is giving some excellent advice - consider this a ditto.

 

[Lauren8211]

Lysine. I take nearly 6000mg per day at the start of a cold sore, and it seriously shortens the duration, if not making them disappear at first. Can''t say enough good things about Lysine.

Try to make sure your diet is high in lysine, or take a lysine supplement daily.

I also ice them right away for 10-15 minutes(I''ve heard that icing helps it not to spread, since viruses like warm environments, but this could be an urban myth. I hate cold sores so I''ll try anything), and then use Abreva.

Valtrex works if you get it right away. You can also take a maintenance amount daily, but the drug is expensive, so if you don''t have good insurance it may not be the best option.

 

[Lauren8211]

Date: 1/7/2009 10:36:52 PM
Author: Haven
I take a couple L-Lysine pills whenever I feel the tingle and that zaps them. They never even come to the surface.


I''m not sure if this is true, but one of my sisters also gets them, and we realized that we always get them after we eat peanut butter. Since we stopped with the PB, no cold sores.

Peanuts are high in arginine, and when your arginine intake outweighs your lysine intake (both amino acids), it helps the virus spread.

You can google a list of foods high in arginine and lysine to see what you should avoid, and what you should eat more of!

 

[SparklyLibra]

Ditto on the Lysine. Also try a Lysine cold sore lip balm stick. (Check out your local natural health food/ supplement store to see if they carry the stick. It helps dry it up faster. I usually have about 4 or 5 on hand as once an episode has passed I don''t use the same stick again.

~SL

 

[shimmer]

I have had cold sores since childhood and a few years ago started taking a chewable B12 vitamin everyday and haven''t had one since. I just googled ''B12 cold sores'' and there seems to be a link with B12 deficiency. I have been tested for deficiency and my doc says I am not, but I have been vegetarian most of my life so I suspect I have low levels anyway.

Sometimes I get canker sores though and then I take lysine and that seems to get rid of them pretty quickly.

So I suggest using B12 as a daily preventative and lysine for any outbreaks.

 

[Phoenix]

Thank you so much, for replying and your suggestions, Crown, Hudson Hawk, Haven, Circe, elledizzy, SparklyLibra and shimmer.

I must say I never knew what Lysine was (what foods are rich in Lysine) or that there was a supplement. I went to the doctor's yesterday and she'd never heard of it either!!

I am certainly going to look out for a supplement and try and enrich my diet with these foods, and also avoid foods high in arginine (LOVE nuts and eat tons, never knew they were bad for my cold sores! Had tons over the Xmas period because someone'd brought some over as a present and I devoured them!)

The doctor also prescribed Valtrex/ Valavyclovir and Avorax cream, as well as Vitamic C in high doses. Hopefully, all of these, together with the Lysine, will help to get rid of the darn sores. In fact, silly me, I thought I'd previously taken Valtrex but it wasn't that, it was something else!

Really appreciate all your help.

 

[Haven]

Date: 1/7/2009 11:23:48 PM
Author: elledizzy5

Date: 1/7/2009 10:36:52 PM
Author: Haven
I take a couple L-Lysine pills whenever I feel the tingle and that zaps them. They never even come to the surface.

I''m not sure if this is true, but one of my sisters also gets them, and we realized that we always get them after we eat peanut butter. Since we stopped with the PB, no cold sores.

Peanuts are high in arginine, and when your arginine intake outweighs your lysine intake (both amino acids), it helps the virus spread.

You can google a list of foods high in arginine and lysine to see what you should avoid, and what you should eat more of!

Good to know! I can''t believe there''s actually truth to our PB theory.

 

[sap483]

I''m a little late to this thread, but I wanted to add that DH thinks garlic supplements also help. He takes both Lysine and Garlic to prevent them, and hasn''t had one in a really long time now.