Cold sore is small blistering usually on the insides of the lips. This is sometimes mistaken to canker sores but these two are different as canker sores are caused by bacteria while cold sores are caused by virus.
Cold sores’ causative agent is herpes simplex virus that is said to be dormant unless it is triggered by stress, anxiety and colds. Usually, colds come to be the usual reason for the appearance of such. Since it comes to be very painful, one may want to just find the ways on how to get rid of cold sores fast. Search no more as here are the ways.
Develop a routine on how to get rid of cold sore fast. Make sure to do this practice regularly to avoid it from coming again and again. Since cold sores are contagious, meaning it can be passed from one person to another, take time to wash hands as much as possible to prevent it from transferring. Before every procedure to treat cold sores, make sure to wash hands carefully.
Now, since cold sore is very painful, you may want to take pain medication before starting the routine. Over the counter pain killers such as acetaminophen could help relieve pain just in time when you would do your daily treatment plan. Once the pain killer takes effect, it is time to touch the cold sores.
Apply generous amount of petroleum jelly over the area. Petroleum jelly will help dry up the area thus facilitating healing. Once it has all dried up, healing broken skin is possible. It is best to apply petroleum jelly at night before you sleep. This way, it will really sink in the sores uninterruptedly to make sure that the medication will really find its way to dry up the area. After applying petroleum jelly, wash hands again.
Frequent hand washing is encouraged in order to avoid transferring the virus that cold sores bring to another vector. This is also an effective way to get rid of the different diseases that may come to find its way inside your body.
This is an effective routine on how to get rid of cold sores fast. Do this religiously until cold sores disappear in a matter of like a day or two. But aside from this routine, you will also encourage faster healing by avoiding foods that might further irritate the cold sores.
Avoid eating salty foods for it will only hurt you once it touches the cold sores. Eating acidic foods such as citrus foods are also some of the irritants to avoid. Generally, these foods will help you never worsen the pain that you are experiencing with these blisters.
Prevention is always better, and there is no better place to begin than increasing your own body health. Vitamins are a great place to start. You should be able to obtain all the vitamins your body requires from a healthy well balanced diet.
Vitamin C in particular is important for boosting your immune system. Some foods rich in Vitamin C include Blackcurrant, Guava, Oranges, Strawberries and Kiwi fruit. There are also many vegetables which are rich in Vitamin C; however, it can easily be broken down by the cooking process. There are also plenty of supplements which boost your vitamin C intake therefore boosting your immune system making you less likely to pick up a herpes virus.
Non-Prescription Treatment Options
There are some of the non-prescription treatment options also available that can be helpful in the management of cold sores. These are generally useful in easing out the pain and even an oral analgesic may not help.
It is important to get rid of the cold sores, because this infection can otherwise spread to the eyes which can prove to be extremely harmful for individuals as this could lead to blindness. Some of the serious infections could also result because of cold sores. These can be seen in people who have a defective immune system and these can be also seen in case of infants.
The severe infections that may result because of cold sores can be controlled by using some of the prescription creams such as Zovirax.
Are you 100% percent sure you know how to get rid of cold sore? It is undoubtedly possible to prevent the cold sores. This can be ensured by making use of a lip moisturizer or by limiting exposure to the sun and UV rays. One could also think of avoiding the cold sores by taking limited amount of stress.
A healthy diet and a proper sleep regimen can also be proving to be extremely beneficial in most of the cases. This could be particularly helpful in both supporting as well as boosting your immune system.
You can also take due precautions in terms of avoiding skin contact with all those people who are suffering from cold sores by ensuring that you do not use the cups, glasses and cans that have been used by them. You can also take steps towards maintaining personal hygiene by washing your hands frequently.