get rid of cold sores faster and prevent spreading.

There are many ways to get rid of a cold sore, usually the cold sore is caused by already irritated skin which allows the herpes virus to emerge and create a painful sore on the outside of your mouth. This is easily spread to other areas of your mouth and can be quite painful. There are several home remedies that can decrease the duration of a cold sore. here is a list of things that are somewhat affective in helping it not to spread.
Lysine which can be found in pill form or in a topical form at any health food store and some grocery stores.
An ice cube pressed to the area for several minutes will decrease the blood flow to the area and reduce the chances of the sore spreading.
Tea tree oil will help it to dry out faster and also helps to disinfect it.
Hydrogen peroxide will help it to dry out and disinfect the area.
WARNING: DO NOT APPLY ANY OF THESE WITH YOUR HANDS.

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Step 1: Killing the cause

freeze off or a generic equivalent should kill the virus from the wound and is a lot less painful then other methods I have used. Apply only to the affected area.

rimar2000 says: Nov 12, 2010. 5:43 PM

I found that Levamizol heals cold sores and aphtas. Besides, prevents its recurrence for some months. Levamizol must be used under medical care.

Gottwinkies says: Nov 14, 2010. 9:18 AM

I have used tea tree oil exclusively for my kids for about 15 years. That stuff is awesome and should be in every first aid kit. When they were younger, I used a Q-tip to apply it. It works best when you start the same day you feel the cold sore coming on. I get the kind that are deep in the skin and can't use the tea tree, so I tried Lysine tablets and those work pretty darn good.

studleylee says: Dec 8, 2012. 4:35 PM

Not for the wimpy: Acetone: Home depot type. tissue compact for 30 seconds multiple times a day if suspected. If you don't agree with this don't comment. I've used it for years and it reduced re-occurrences to nil. Sun, wind, or or stress induced. Weakens
the virus by removing binding locations, to the point that the immune system can finish off. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/5062678

McNoodle says: May 31, 2011. 7:27 PM

does abriva work better than these methods?

grannyjones says: Dec 11, 2011. 12:01 PM

Generic valacyclovir--at the earliest possible sign. RX only.
Also good to have handy if someone develops shingles on a weekend.

wblack3 says: Sep 26, 2011. 6:15 PM

Hey, here's a few things (trust me, I did my PhD in a lab working with equine herpes... long story)

Ice it: apply an ice cube for about 5 minutes directly to the cold sore. Then let it warm up. Repeat a few times. It really works! It seems to mess the virus up and allow your body to heal normally within a day or so. If not, the virus will keep noodling 'round, keeping the cold sore open and weeping virus for a few days at least. Yukko!

Lysine: meh... they say taking the amino acid supplement l-Lysine messes the virus up somehow. Can't hurt.

Zovirax: and other anti-cold sore medicines only work at the 'tingle' stage when the virus is essentially using your nerve endings as a jumping castle o' joy. Don't bother after the blister comes up, and even less when the blister breaks.

Don't kiss anyone if you have a blister and vice versa! It's full of virus!

Use lip balm with UV-screen in it. If you have had a cold sore in the past, no matter how long ago, the virus is ready and waiting in some old nerves to bust a move as soon as it 'thinks' you are tired, stressed, under attack, etc... just like rats leaving a sinking ship...

they love it if you go ski-ing, get all tired and a bit sunburnt on the face, so use sunscreen to prevent this!