The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.
Artificial Sweetener Link
Posted by Jack (Boston, Ma) on 09/13/2010
★★★★★
The Answer - This took some digging as to the cause, but first I will tell you the cure:
Rinse & topical: For morning before work routine rinse with 1 cup water 3 tblsp white vinegar 1 tsp salt, then take cue tip wetted with hydrogen peroxide and dab infected area & then spread antibiotic ointment that is in a petroleum base over lips and affected area.
For night do same rinse, dab with peroxide and then pat infected area with baking soda and allow to dry - leaving it on over night. The baking soda more than anything I believe to help keep area dry. Don't go picking at the area or rubbing it with the cue tip or your fingers. Actually, just try to leave it alone.
By morning 2 you will be on road to recovery. Now along with this take a multi vitamin, a b-complex, folic acid, b-12, iron, vitamin C and acidophilus supplements. Take one acidophilus with each meal.
Now the cause: sucralose (artificial sweetener). A Duke U study whose results were disqualified (squashed) found that in tests with rats that Sucrlose taken in acceptable quantities proportional to their size decreased good intestinal bacteria by 50% by day 10. So, so much for the immune system; let the canker sores and angular chelitis begin! Let the Candida run wild! I was having 2 glasses of wine a day that kept the bad bacteria at bay but I stopped drinking and within two weeks things went out of control. For the 3 months prior to that I had been religiously eating Activia Lite which contains sucralose. The cracks in the corners of my mouth on a few occasion during that time tried to get a foothold but the wine stopped that from happening. I have now switched over to that Greek yogurt (plain). I take my vitamins. I still do not drink but I will soon now that the cankers & angular chelitis are behind me. Oh, and I should point out that the sucralose had other effects on me. I was having bad insomnia and couldn't figure what the heck was going on. I would say within 48 hours of stopping the Activia my sleep returned and the Chilitis started to improved. I guarantee also the sleep had a big effect on helping me get cured of the chelitis. I also had an odd rash on my torso. All this crazy stuff. I really thought it was from alcohol dependence though I really hadn't been drinking enough or for that long to have any problems.
In the end I think in an odd way the alcohol was keeping this thing at bay. It was crazy, I hadn't had a canker in a couple of years and I had never had angular chelitis before - and who knows what that rash on my torso was all about. I thought it was from my tried & true laundry detergent that suddenly decided to turn on me. I have vowed never to consume any artificial sweeteners again. I have almost cut sweets of any kind out of my diet. I have switched to whole grains, lightly steamed vegetables, nuts, seeds, fruit, and healthy protein sources. No more simple carbs. I was always kind of healthy but now I'm a little over-the-top but why not.
Yogurt
Posted by Angela (Kirkland, Wa, Usa) on 06/30/2010
★★★★★
Yogurt cured my Angular Chelitis
I applied yogurt to a small inflamed rash at the corner of my mouth several times a day for 2 days. It was mostly cleared up in 2 days, and all gone in 3 days. I used homemade yogurt I had made from fresh goat's milk.
Athlete's Foot Cream
Posted by Maria (New Jersey) on 01/29/2021
★★★★★
Yes, Athletes foot cream works for angular chelitis! I use generic lamisil and it goes away fast. It's the same bacteria. Yeast. I highly recommend.
Folic Acid
Posted by Misha (Binghamton, Ny) on 10/15/2015
★★★★★
I am surprised that folic acid supplementation is not at the top of this list for Angular Chelitis. Folic acid absolutely works for the treatment of this condition and I can attest to its effectiveness on at least two occassions.
Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin)
Posted by Sheila (Md) on 07/05/2015
★★★★★
Angular Cheilitis is CURED by B2. This is why they add riboflavin to our milk, fortified cereals, bread, etc. Took me years to figure out, but in hours I feel better & cracks in the corner of my mouth heal within a day.
Avoid Fish Oil
Posted by K. In La (Los Angeles, Ca) on 11/27/2014
★★★★★
NO FISH OIL - To treat another condition I had been taking Cod Liver Oil (CLO 1500mg) and occasionally coconut oil (1000mg). Reading about Krill Oil I then added that (2000mg) and took the other two more regularly. My skin became a bit dryer but I thought it was from my heater being on overnight due to fall/winter weather. Then I developed the cracked corner lips and thinking I was just dehydrated expected them to heal with extra water over a day or two. A week later it hadn't healed and I knew something was wrong.
Thinking it was an infection, I tried tea tree oil or grapeseed oil, along with castor oil and then Listerine before bed. It would help overnight but return by the end of the next day.
I then thought about my diet. The only significant change I had to my diet was the addition of the Krill oil, and increase in CLO and Coconut oil. Doing research on Angular Cheilitis I found this:
"In general, dietary intake of natural, vitamin A rich sources like fish oils and cod liver oil increases the risk of developing angular cheilitis."
I immediately stopped all the other oils and started a Primrose Oil (1000mg to reduce inflammation) along with a B-50 complex twice a day. I would also poke a Vitamin E capsule and squeeze the contents onto my lips like a lip gloss. In the morning and evenings I'd drink a great Detox tea with dandelion root, licorice root, burdock, and other great liver supporting elements.
The condition began healing overnight. It took 3-4 days to completely exfoliate and renew the skin, but it's healed completely.
If your diet or location has changed in the past few months your system may be out of balance from changes in food and/or water sources. If you're taking supplements, optional medications, or beverages you may want to stop, detox and go vegan/green for a few weeks. And be patient. Healing from the outside in takes time; and the more out of balance your system, the longer the wait.
Yogurt
Posted by Dan (Columbia, Sc) on 09/02/2013
★★★★★
I had a moderate sized sore/crack on one corner of my mouth (Angular Chelitis). I wasn't familiar with Angular Chelitis, so I initially used my two "go-to" remedies - Raw Honey and Tumeric - on the sore with little to no result. After seeing the yogurt recommendation on EarthClinic, I gave it a try. I covered the sore in yogurt, and within minutes I felt it was working. Sure enough, within about 4 or 5 hours the cracked sore was gone.
There was still some residual tumeric on the sore when I applied the yogurt; not sure if that helped speed up the healing process. But generally speaking, I was both suprised and thrilled with the results/effectiveness of applying yogurt to Angular Chelitis. I would strongly recommend trying this remedy first if you come down with a bout of AC.
Dan
Folic Acid
Posted by Misha (Binghamton, New York) on 04/01/2012
★★★★★
I highly recommend supplementing with Folic Acid to eliminate this condition. Take a slightly larger dose than recommended. I can personally attest to its effectiveness.
Vitamin B Complex
Posted by Martin (Tipperary, 0) on 06/15/2011
★★★★★
I found a message board from Dr. Stoll when doing some searches on Angular Cheilitis Home Remedy. I found no other solutions online except Dr.Walts recomendation to take b 100 vitamins. A few weeks later and its totally cleared up and hasn't come back.
Bee Propolis
Posted by Catscradle123 (New York, NY) on 07/31/2010
★★★★★
Bee Propolis cured my Angular Cheilitis. I had a painful rip at the corner of my mouth that would not go away for a week. Last night, I added three drops of Bee Propolis tincture and slept on it. The next morning (today) the rip healed significantly. Will keep adding drops today!
Castor Oil and Baking Soda
Posted by Lkslive (Vancouver, Bc /canada) on 10/30/2011
Try marigold cream - this helps with healing and with bacteria etc. You may also be in a vitamin b or e deficiency- take a good multi along with vit e and b complex-b12 and folic acid this regime daily will help.
Athlete's Foot Cream
Posted by Sharon (Saugerties, NY) on 01/03/2009
★★★★★
I have been dealing with cracked lips for about two months and have been seaching for a way to treat them to no avail until I tried a generic brand of CVS CLOTRIMAZOLE 1% (this is a cream that is used to treat athlete's foot.) After using it for only two days, my lips are no longer cracked and finally feel normal.
Avoid Peppermint Products
Posted by Lorayne (Napa, Ca) on 09/04/2018
★★★★★
I just started having cracks in the corner of my mouth 6 months ago. First time was in February and just thought it was the cold weather and dry because of having the heat on etc. Next time was in July, suffered for a week and then it got better, came right back, cleared up when I started using OTC Hydrocortisone cream. It came back again a week later and I was just ready to go see a dermatologist. I thought about what was I doing differently and remembered that I bought new toothpaste, A&H Peroxicare. I looked it up on line and a LOT of people were having trouble with this toothpaste and mouth cracks, dry lips, dry mouth, tongue irritation. Stopped using it right away and within 24 hours the difference is almost 100% healed. I used the hydrocortisone cream for about 12 more hours since I was having an allergic reaction. 24 hours later, I don't even need that now. I never would have dreamed that I would ever be allergic to toothpaste but there is some ingredient in it that is causing a lot of irritation to a lot of people. I think back in February, I was using the same toothpaste but I couldn't swear to it. Good Luck finding your cure, the mouth cracks are painful.
Honey, Athlete's Foot Cream
Posted by Sf (San Francisco, Ca) on 12/07/2017
★★★★★
I got angular cheilitis from being exposed to harsh cold conditions without proper lip moisturizer/sunscreen and face protection. My lips puffed up, the cracks at the edges of my lips were raw and painful, the skin around my mouth broke out and then got crusty and flaky, I had pus buildup, and the skin under my lips broke.
What didn't work for me:
Garlic and honey paste, teabags, cucumber, Vaseline, aquaphor
What ended up working:
I switched in between applying local raw honey to the cracks, rinsed it off after an hour, then applied athletes foot cream (from CVS), throughout the day. Burt's beeswax chapstick (original), helped with the chapped lips, and vitamin e oil helped with the flaky skin. I also stopped using fluoride gel toothpaste when brushing my teeth and used just basic white fluoride toothpaste, as it doesn't sting the cuts at all.
it's been under a week since I've been using this regimen and I'm almost healed.
Folic Acid
Posted by Dolly (Cherry Hill, Nj) on 08/12/2013
★★★★★
Folic Acid supplements works for Angular Chelitis.
Yogurt
Posted by Honem00nrs (Jacksonville, Florida) on 02/07/2012
★★★★★
I have had angular chelitis problem for years and I was always giving a prescription called dental paste. I decided to try plain yogurt with the acidophilus and took a q tip and applied to the corners of my mouth in a clump before bedtime and when I awoke it was completely cleared up :)
Artificial Sweetener Link
Posted by Madelyn (Idaho ) on 03/14/2023
No reaction to erythritol that I know of. However, I did have what I believe was angular chelitis on two separate occasions after eating cheap, non organic soy sauce. Once I switched back to organic Tamari sauce I haven't had it come back. However, I recently saw in the news erythritol has been linked to an increase in adverse heart effects. I would use it sparingly regardless.
