The Truth About Cold Sores and Their Treatment
Disclaimer
This post is not intended to diagnose or treat any ailment. If you suspect you have a medical problem, consult with your qualified medical practitioner to diagnose and treat.
Cold sores and fever blisters, technically called Herpes Labialis, are caused by the Herpes Simplex Type 1 virus. It is a common infection-80% of all adolescents have antibodies to the virus, but only .16 percent of the population actively get visible symptoms. Of those, 30% have recurring bouts which start as blisters primarily on the lips, last for one or two weeks, are painful, unsightly, crust over, and eventually, heal. They are contagious by contact with other individuals who have not been infected while the sores last. Sometimes the first bout can involve the entire mouth and cause fever and malaise. This condition is called primary gingival herpetic stomatitis.
Once the lesion heals, the virus resides in the trigeminal nerve ganglion, which is the sensory nerve of the head. Fever, menstruation, sunlight, and upper respiratory infections can reactivate the virus. 1
My Struggle With Cold Sores
I suffered from cold sores for my entire life. The things I noticed that brought them on for me were:
Sudden weather changes.
Too much sun exposure.
Lack of sleep.
Co-occurring illnesses like colds.
Nothing worked to prevent or treat them for me. Trust me; I tried everything.
Lifestyle Is the Best Prevention
Almost two decades ago, I changed just about everything in my life in an attempt to regain my health. I do not get Herpes Labialis cold sores anymore. You can read the details about it here. I could find no research linking whole-food diets to herpes immunity, and my experience does not mean it will work for you. However, since good sleep, moderate sun exposure, good movement, nutrient-dense foods, avoiding processed foods, and good stress management augment our immune systems, I am comfortable crediting them with my immunity.
Here is a list of the changes I made with links for more information:
I corrected my sleep to ensure that I get eight hours per night.
I corrected my diet by getting rid of processed carbs and seed oils.
I maintain my strength.
I move daily.
I get healthy sun exposure as much as I can.
I spend time with supportive people and promote intellectual, emotional, social, spiritual, vocational, and financial wellness for myself.
I make sure I can breathe properly, especially when sleeping.
Some natural treatments for cold sores exist, but they are marginal at best:
Honey
In a small study from 2004, the mean duration of attacks and pain, occurrence of crusting, and mean healing time with honey treatment was slightly over 36 percent better than those taking the most common antiviral for Herpes, Valacyclovir. 2 The study was with only eight individuals, so it is of poor quality. Another similar but larger study found no difference. 3 Honey is no miracle treatment in my book.
L-Lycine
One gram of L-Lycine three times daily resulted in 2.4 fewer sores than the control group, but that was per all 27 of the Lysine group versus 25 for the control, so the effect was small. The study also claimed that the severity and duration were less. 4 I was not impressed by the quality of their data. Lycine may help, but the effect is small.
Conventional treatments don't do any better than natural treatments:
Topical Anesthetics
Over-the-counter topical anesthetics help alleviate symptoms and reduce the lesions' duration by three days in one study. 4 Anbesol is probably the best-known product. My favorite, however, was Blistex.
Prescription Topical Antiviral treatments
Ten studies of topical acyclovir showed it shortened the duration from half a day to two and a half days. Symptoms were not decreased. 5
Oral Antivirals
Valacyclovir is available as an orally taken medication in pill form. Several studies have been done on its effectiveness in healing herpes once it has started. Unfortunately, the results are fairly flaccid. Most studies show that it decreases the duration by about one day, which is not very impressive. 6
Prevention
Sunscreen
I mentioned I used to get cold sores if I spent too much time in the sun. In one study, 38 patients were exposed to experimental ultraviolet (UV) light. None of the test subjects using a sunscreen developed herpes labialis compared with 71% of those using a placebo. 7 So now I use lip balm with sunscreen and apply it several times during the day if I am out in bright sunshine and no longer get the lesions.
Antiviral Cream
Applying prescription acyclovir cream five times daily for 3 to 7 days before sun exposure cut the incidence by fifty percent in one study. 8 A long-term study showed that taking it four times daily for four months only reduced symptoms by five days and days with lesions by three. 9
Oral Acyclovir and Valacyclovir
Several studies have been done on short-term oral acyclovir to prevent Herpes Labialis. Most don't show much benefit, but one study showed that taking it twice daily for one week twelve days before exposure cut down the incidence by almost 30%. 10 Longer-term, an analysis of two studies showed that once-daily administration of 500 mg of valacyclovir for four months increased the time interval until the next relapse from 9.6 to 13.1 weeks. During the four months, 60% of the patients receiving it were relapse-free compared with 38% in the placebo group. 11
Conclusion
I had tried almost all of the natural and conventional treatments I mentioned today over the years with meager results. I am not suggesting not to try them; after all, some studies say sunscreen does not work, but it did for me. But my experience is that the trouble was hardly worth it for most of them. The only product I used consistently was Blistex during the more painful portion of the lesion. It works well for me. However, the lifestyle changes have made me seemingly immune to getting cold sores. Amazingly, I also don't get colds anymore either. If you have suffered from cold sores, maybe you can identify with my lifelong frustrations. If you are looking for a potential end to cold sores, maybe lifestyle modifications can work for you as they did for me!