★★★★★
I wanted to add my comments as I too have tried many of the normal suggestions with little result for angular chelitis. I actually stumbled on Milk of Magnesia by accident. I tried it one day when I noticed the cracks returning-yet-again.
Milk of Magnesia works!! Any time I feel that dry/tingly feeling like the corner of my mouth is about to crack again- I do the following and have had great results nipping it in the bud before it actually becomes red or inflamed.
1. Wash area with dish soap and let air dry.
2. I take a dab of Milk of Magnesia (plain only) and well saturate the crack/corner of mouth. Let air dry.
**I think the main way this works is that it gets deep into the cracks and dries- keeping that area dry and unable to sustain yeast or bacteria.
3. After about a half hour I rinse it off and put a thin coat of plain aloe gel. Let dry.
I have found that doing this before bed is a huge help. Normally when I wake up, it is gone or in the process of healing. I like to keep the aloe handy and reapply before eating (this seems to help it from tearing when taking big bites or chewing).
I hope that this helps someone! I was really surprised how well Milk of Magnesia worked for this. On a side note- MoM can also be used as a deodorant. It works really well for stinky armpit sweat. Apply after shower- let dry completely (I stand in front of a fan :) and off you go. No pit stains, no smell and no residue on your shirts.
Milk of Magnesia
★★★★★
I hope this helps someone who is suffering with angular chelitis/thrush.
Around 3 months ago I noticed little horizontal cracks at the corners of my mouth. Soon very dry lips appeared, and I never have dry lips. I started putting vasaline on my lips which seemed to help but it never completly went away. I found this website and others which advised using an anti-fungal cream, which I did. It worked and I thought I had it beat, but a month later it was back and worse.
Not only did I now have the cracks and the dry lips, the inside of my mouth became very sore and it was unbearable to eat or open my mouth very wide. I used more vasaline and since I suspected it was yeast related I started rinsing my mouth with 1 part organic apple cider vinager and one part water. It was pretty painful at first, but after a week it seemed to go away, or so I thought.
Two weeks later, I noticed my lips feeling different and the inside of my bottom lip becoming very sensitive and sure enough the next day the cracks were back!
I came back to this sight and read about people using Milk of Magnesia to combat yeast and if its in the mouth, its called thrush. I thought only babies could get that and I'm a mother of three breastfed babies who never got it, so why me and why now at 40 yrs old am I having to deal with thrush!
Well, last Friday I tried it and it worked like nothing else has. 2 days after my first use, my mouth looked completely normal. I'm on day 5 and its like nothing ever hapend. No cracks, no sores, no dry lips!!!!
Here is what I did:
Step 1- Buy plain, unflavored milk of magnesia. Generic works, peppermint flavored and cherry do not.
Step 2- I shook it up well and, swished it around in my mouth, for about a minute. No, it does not taste good and do not swallow, spit it out but do not rinse. When you spit it out you will notice white stuff immediately coming out of your mouth. I do believe that it is dead yeast.
Step 3- Apply a nice layer on, around your lips, and inside lips. It is runny, so it will be a thin layer. Let it dry like a mask with your mouth slightly open. Use cotton balls to soak up extra saliva if you dont want to swallow.
Step 4 - Let it dry completely. Yes, you will look like a clown but the results are worth it.
Step 5 - Rinse off with plain water. And you can rinse your mouth out to.
Step 6 - After 15-20 min, brush your teeth with baking soda and rinse with 1part Apple Cider Vinegar and 1 part water. Be sure and brush your tongue and gently brush the inside of your mouth to help exfoliate the dead skin.
Step 7 - Apply vasaline to keep lips and surrounding area as moist as possible.
You will notice the skin on your lips and around your mouth, that has been infected with the yeast, will dry to a thin scab. Please do not pick at it. It will come off, but you can irritate and tear your healthy, delicate lip skin if you try to pull it off too soon. Not fun, I know. The skin will start to come off on the second or third day.
I did this 4 times on the 1st day (morning, mid-morning, afternoon and before bed). 3 times a day for two days. 2 times a day for 2 days and now just once a day.
Good Luck!
