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.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Posted by Lee (Salem, NH) on 03/17/2007
★★★★★
I have always used hydrogen peroxide for skin infections, insect bites, cankers, cold sores & deleting blood stains. Results are quick & inexpensive. I dab it on my finger, straight from the bottle, to apply to a cold sore or canker. I have never had a cold sore for more than a day. When I was a teenager, I also applied some to any pimples that might crop up.
Vitamin E and Gold Bond Medicated Powder
Posted by Lucy (NY) on 02/26/2007
★★★★★
Remedy for HSV 1: Vitamin E either tabs or oil- (higher degree of IU's, the better) with Gold Bond Powder! Place both together on sores. It heals w/o any scabbing! Best to you all!
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by LaVon (Coeburn, VA) on 08/09/2006
★★★★★
Out of everything that I have used, this was the only thing that took care of the pain and with only one day use. Already the Fever Blister is drying up. Last week I got to much sun and it caused me to get a Fever Blister on my bottom lip... Had me crippled for about 3 days. Had to drink with a straw and had to eat finger food so nothing would touch my lip.. I was in pain... For some reason the internet was my only solution.. Looked up Old Timers Remedy....... Thank God I did... Read all about it, So, found a bottle and poured some in a glass, took a cotton swab and soaked the Fever Blister really good and WOW Pain City for about 30 sec. after the pain left the fever blister did not hurt anymore. I did this on and off all day, now it is late in the evening and the thing is healing. Gods Honest Truth Rem..... No Pain No Gain.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Posted by Alex (USA) on 04/17/2006
★★★★★
It works; I started using it with the early symptoms, like five times a day. It stopped it from coming out.
Ear Wax
Posted by Marvin (Calgary, Canada)
★★★★★
For Cold Sores on the lip...(I know it sounds nasty) ear wax rubbed on the sore repeatedly from the time you first get the tingling sensation does wonders. Since I tried this for the first time, I've not had a single one do anything but start to form a bump... they then vanish in a few days like magic.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Posted by Jr (Jeffersonville, In) on 05/09/2011
I used hydrogen peroxide after reading about it here. worked for me too!!
Baking Soda
Posted by Susan (USA)
★★★★★
Another excellent use for baking soda is for mouth ulcers and cold sores. Simply mix a teaspoon of baking soda with 100mls of water and use as a gargle. For cold sores use the same solution. Dab directly onto the cold sore using a cotton bud. Do this at least twice a day.
Neem Leaves or Oil
Posted by GrassTwig (Geneva) on 02/15/2025
★★★★★
I have long been using neem oil for cold sores. It has to be used as early as possible when tingling appears. Cover the area and around the mouth with a thin layer and apply many times per day. Use a small 10ml empty essential oil bottle and fill it with neem oil and always carry it around with you.
This is the only remedy that actually prevented the cold sores from going from stage one to the other stages of the blisters. Using acyclovir, I always had to go through stages 2 to 5.
Together with neem oil, it is good to supplement with L-Lysine and reduce sugar coffee and other arginine rich food (wheat for example). When going out in the sun use lips sunscreens, as long exposure to sun is likely contributing to outbreak triggers.
Colloidal Copper
Posted by Kathy (Grandville, MI) on 05/12/2024
★★★★★
Herpes cold sore
Dabbing colloidal copper on the cold sore stops the cold sore from ever breaking out.
DMSO
Posted by Lisa (USA) on 09/11/2023
★★★★★
Yep.. I'm amazed... that's the stuff!!! I feel it, but it never broke out in a sore!
Niacin
Posted by Adriana (California) on 04/22/2021
★★★★★
My ex suffered from herpes simplex in the mouth, which smelled like the day after a battlefield, rotting. He had lost lots of weight and many remedies were not working. He could not eat and had lost a great deal of weight.
Because it seemed the condition was stuck, I had read that Niacin could move stuck radioactive conditions.
He took Niacin and within 2 days was back to work.
Magnesium Chloride
Posted by Marcia (Utah) on 05/01/2020
★★★★★
A drop of liquid magnesium chloride (aka magnesium oil) on the end of a Q-Tip, will kill a cold sore immediately.
Manuka Honey
Posted by Sunny (Los Angeles, Ca) on 09/13/2018
★★★★★
I tried putting castor oil for few days and didn't work, I thought it was actually getting worse. Then I tried putting raw royal jelly and didn't work. I then put high grade Manuka honey and in few days it worked. I put honey in the morning and after eating I brushed my teeth and put the honey again and in the evening before sleep. I put it on with q-tip. It may become crusty at first, but continue still and reapply after washing several times throughout the day and it will work!
EC: Hi Sunny, no ailment listed in your post. We're guessing it's a cold sore but please correct us if we're wrong.
Olive Leaf Extract
Posted by Alex (Thessaloniki, Greece) on 08/10/2017
★★★★★
I took olive leafs and it worked greatly! Here in Greece we have many olive tree so I just cut a small branch and put it in water with sugar in order to preserve.
I didn't take olive leafs when I felt the nerve in the lip irritated but I was late and took it when the blisters started to appear. I chewed two leafs and put it over the blisters for an hour, securing it with a trauma tape, tree times per day.
After just 24 hours the crust formatted in almost all the area and fluid it produced was minimised in relation to other times. Also the tingling or itching period lasted only the time I didn't put olive leafs and one day more. I have even eaten some leafs.
I continue putting olive leafs three times per day until it is almost gone. The bitter taste in olive leafs is due to Oleuropein killing the Herpes virus.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Anonymous (US) on 07/30/2017
★☆☆☆☆
Ok so I soaked Apple Cider Vinegar on a cotten ball and held the cotten ball on my cold sore for maybe more than ten minutes. Once I took it off I realized my lip swelled.. A lot. IF I were to do this again I would only dab on the Apple Cider Vinegar directly on the cold sore. Now I'm sitting in my room with an ice cube to my lip.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Posted by Paige (Texas) on 05/11/2017
★★★★★
Hydrogen peroxide for cold sores: just keep applying 😀
Cold Sore Prevention Tips
Posted by Rr (Tennessee) on 12/10/2015
★★★★★
Any one who gets cold sores try this. This is to keep from getting them. Don't wash behind or around your ears. I swear there is something about oil being behind the ears that protects you from outbreaks. I was getting one after another until I realized it started when I switched from body wash to real soap which strips all your natural oils. I remembered how I had one almost all the time growing up and guess what we used...soap.
I stopped washing around my ears all together. I just wipe the area with a wet wash cloth occasionally, no soap or body wash. It has been more than a year since I got one and that's a long time for me. I also haven't had a cold since I started this.
I also only clean the ear out with a cotton swab when it feels like I have to.
I hope this helps someone.
