COLD SORE TREATMENTS

Cold sore treatments are of great importance for all of us who suffer these painful and irritating sores. We are always searching and hopeful for that miracle cold sore treatment that will eliminate our cold sores for life. 

About nine out of ten people worldwide are infected with the cold sore herpes virus.  This creates a huge need for any treatment that can eliminate this burden or at least bring some relief.

Some cold sore treatments work and many are not worth the money.

You be the judge. Take a look at some of the more common commercially offered cold sore treatments that are popular right now.

Please understand these are just my personal observations. In no way should this information take the place of your own health care professional.

Novitra: A topical-use salve which provides zinc sulfate as the main active ingredient. Zinc is well known as a powerful healing mineral.  There are many forms of zinc - most will not work for this application.  Zinc sulfate is the best form because it is more readily absorbed.

Although not a total solution, zinc helps the healing process, drying up the sore and discouraging the virus. A good product but somewhat expensive.

It does not provide temporary pain relief so you may want to use it along with a product containing pain-deadening lidocaine or benzocaine.

Abreva: This seems to be one of the more popular ones right now and is highly advertised.  Abreva makers paid a million dollars in court settlements because of false claims about the product. 

Their proven false claim was that Abreva would cut the cold sore healing time in half. 

Docosanol is the active ingredient that stops the cold sores from getting any bigger.  It does this by forming a protective barrier around nearby healthy cells - effectively stopping cold sore growth.

Abreva works best if applied in the very early stages.  Once the sore breaks open, most of the damage is already done.

The studies I've seen show Abreva will shorten the cold sores event by two to four days. I've seen apply ice give as good a result - for no cost.

Zilactin: A cold sore gel that forms a protective film over the entire cold sore. This is actually a good idea.

It also contains a pain reducing ingredient called "benzyl alcohol" which provides you about three hours of relief.

It also contains salicylic acid. Salicylic acid is irritating to the skin so I question the value here.  Salicylic acid is an active ingredient in products for chemically burning off warts.

Also - If you have an aspirin allergy - don't use Zilactin.

Releev:  This cold sore treatment contains the active ingredient benzalkonium chloride. The main purpose of this chemical is antiseptic - cleansing and drying up a sore. 

Creators claim this cold sore treatment removes cold sore symptoms with just a single day of treatment.  Maybe it does for some people, but I haven't seen it.  If it were actually true, it certainly would have made headlines by now.

If you have an allergy to the daisy family of flowers, or are pregnant or nursing, DO NOT USE! 

I would avoid using on children also.  Just too many warnings on the label.  There are a lot better and much cheaper cold sore treatments you could be using.

Campho-Phenique:  This stuff has been around for 50 years or more. The active ingredient is camphorated phenol, which primarily is a pain reliever and will keep bacterial infection out.

They now offer several different formulas. One contains petroleum jelly to keep the scab soft - a very good idea to speed healing.      

Lysine salves:  Lysine has earned a reputation for treating and preventing cold sores. Many studies have been conducted on lysine for cold sores and it to be very good for cold sore treatment - but only when taken orally (either supplements or food).

Using lysine as a topical salve has not been too useful, from what I have observed.  Lysine is a large molecule that does not absorb well through the skin.  It has to get into the cells.  The only effective way for that to happen is through your digestive system and blood stream.

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ON COLD SORE TREATMENTS THAT DON'T HELP?? 
 
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