Top Natural Remedies for Cold Sores (Fever Blisters)

Garlic

Posted by Fae (Santa Rosa, Ca) on 06/11/2013
★★★★★

The juice of fresh raw garlic clove applied topically stops a cold sore dead in its tracks! Results are felt instantly. I've tried many of the natural Earth Clinic remedies for cold sores (ice, peroxide, L-lysine, nail polish remover, etc. ) with varying degrees of success so when I say it works almost immediately, I am speaking from experience! As soon as you feel that dreaded tingle or see any sign of the blister, peel a raw clove, nick the end to release the juices (or smash it in a garlic press) and apply to the sore. Hold it on there for about 15 seconds. It will sting like a sonuva..but that is the garlic juice doing its job and is actually a satisfying sensation. I usually only have to do this 2 or 3 times within an hour or two, holding it on there for about 15 seconds each time (any longer and the strong juice may irritate the skin) and the virus inside the cold sore dies or retreats. You can feel it! Any physical damage the cold sore has caused will have to heal in it's own time which is why it's best to catch it before there is any visible sign but even when I had a big red swollen bubble, it flattened within an hour, dried up and flaked off within a day or so. Instantly effective and dependable! I have read that garlic is a strong anti-viral and it is now my only cold sore treatment. I love Earth Clinic and wanted to share this simple but effective cold sore cure.

Iodine

Posted by Kilgore (Jackson, Ms) on 12/06/2012
★★★★★

I have had a long standing oral herpes infection completely resolved by taking Lugol's iodine 5% solution. Ten drops in my coffee in the morning and ten more in milk after lunch. Took about two months, but infection is completely gone, including scars and blemishes.

General Feedback

Posted by Luiz Fernando (Brazil) on 11/08/2021

nope, that would never been an overdose. I have taken lugols 5% doses for 7 years ranging from 8 drops to 20-40 without issues besides some herx symptoms from detox.

The minimum amount for maintenance is 8 drops = 50mg, but often doses of 16 drops = 100mg is recommended because we are fully loaded on bromine/bromides, fluorides and toxins that will take a long time to clear before iodine/iodide can enter it receptors and works on sufficiency, doctors in the past have gave 200mg-3grams of iodine for serious conditions like syphilis and dangerous infections. IT cant be overdosing in that range, our body holds 2.5grams of iodine/iodide content when sufficient.

So any info that tells you to take 2-3 drops is a lie. People taking 2-3 drops will take 3-4 years to detox all bromides and fluorides to get into the sufficiency. Reminding you that we are exposed to fluoride and mostly bromine/bromide on a daily basis, as lots of products we have are loaded on bromine/bromide fire retardants, so you could never reach the full benefit of iodine in that dose.

I take 100mg =16 drops now for months this year, and I feel really good.

Oregano Oil

Posted by Vitaminjunkie (Marietta, Georgia, United States) on 11/15/2012
★★★★★

I used Oil of Oregano in capsule form for about 5 months. I used one 1500 mg. Capsule in the afternoon and sometimes another at night. I also used the straight oil of oregano itself on the outbreaks. This was for genital herpes, and I have never had another outbreak since, but I took the capsule - usually just the one afternoon dose - EVERY DAY. This... Stuff... works! Have had many stressful situations happen in the past few months and not a single outbreak even though I quit using the stuff about two months ago.

Additional notes: Oil of oregano can cause problems with iron absorption. If you take an iron supplement - I would take it early in the morning so that it can be absorbed and then take the oil of oregano later in the day. Also, if your immune system is compromised in other ways - say HIV or any other immune system related illnesses - oil of oregano may not be an option for you because it might affect other medications. You would have to check with your health professional on this. That being said, if it's just the herpes virus that is your problem (oral or genital) and you are trying to kill it - consisten use of oil of oregano will absolutely do this! Don't let the medical profession tell you there's no cure!

L-Lysine

Posted by L (New York, New York, Usa) on 03/29/2011
★★★★★

I have found that taking large doses of L-lysine as SOON as the cold sore begins to develop will cause it to never develop... Or if it does, it won't be noticeable, and won't last more than a couple of days. I have recently undergone a period where I have fought off about 4 cold sores in about a month. It has been absolutely terrible, however, I have gotten to the point where I am pretty sure I have come up with a foolproof prevention and treatment method.

First of all, STRESS and DIET are the two main culprits of these sores. Any diet high in Arginine combined with unusually high levels of stress, little sleep, or menstration will definitely make it hard for the body to fight off cold sores. I have found that I MUST completely eliminate coffee, any form of nuts (including peanut butter), oatmeal, and soft drinks in order to prevent these suckers from appearing. Chocolate intake also needs to be monitored. All 4 times that I have gotten these sores, I had had unusually high levels of stress and had a ton of coffee/soft drinks. I don't know if it is the caffeine or coffee itself, but I do know this must be avoided altogether for me.

Taking L-Lysine each day is NOT suggested, since your body will become immune to it, and it won't be as effective taking it when a cold sore does appear. However, making sure to eat foods with Lysine everyday if you are a frequent sufferer is essential. Yogurt (with live cultures) is wonderful as far as lysine counts are concerned. I have started to include yogurt in my daily diet , and other dairy products such as cheeses and milk, since these are all wonderful foods rich in lysine. Also, most vegetables are excellent as well.

Despite all these precautions, sometimes the suckers still appear, and treatment is vital in getting rid of them quicker. I use a combination of abreva (as soon as it first appears), hand sanitizer (especially if the blister is very tiny... I will pop it and IMMEDIATELY apply hand sanitizer to kill the germs... And make sure to wash your hands thoroughly afterward.. This seems to be effective), as well as nail polish remover to dry it up. The bigger the sore gets however, the less you should touch it. Definitely do not pop it if it is huge, since this will only spread germs. The best method for a huge sore is to dry it out, so nail polish remover is best. Also application of honey, beeswax, and hot tea bags have all seemed to relieve it, though I am not sure if those actually HEAL the sore.

On top of these topical applications, I also take LARGE doses of lysine (about 1000 every few hours), as well as Vitamin C. I believe this is honestly the most crucial part of the whole treatment. Make sure your diet is completely free of arginine when the sore is developing... Otherwise it might get pretty nasty. Arginine is prevolent in coffee, chocolate, nuts, peanut butter, coconut, oatmeal, wheat (meaning bread and beer needs to be avoided!! ), jello, brown rice, beans, and lentils.

Eating a lot of licorice also has seemed to help me a ton(make sure the licorice you buy contains real licorice extract... the artificial stuff won't help).

This is a lot... But this is my method of prevention and treatment that seems to work quite nicely. Hope this helps someone!!

Hydrogen Peroxide

Posted by Renee (El Dorado, Kansas) on 05/28/2007
★★★★★

My vanity for white teeth found me reaching for the peroxide 16 years ago. A side affect was that I was no longer experiencing cold sores (approx 6 a year). My regime was brushing teeth, gums, and tongue with peroxide a couple times a week. When I forgot to do this, the tingling sensation of an outbreak reminded me to do the peroxide treatment and no cold sore surfaced. There have been a few times that I was out of peroxide and got the cold sore but it was gone within 2 days of getting peroxide and the sore was very mild. Apply directly in addition to brushing the entire mouth. I've had two cold sores in the last 15 years. The one during my divorce and the other after getting unjustly fired from my job. Both were mild attacks.

Clove Oil

Posted by Christy B (Turbotville, Pa USA) on 03/13/2024
★★★★★

Most of the time, when I feel the first tingle of a cold sore, I can head it off with high doses of lysine. Unfortunately, there are some times, like the one I'm dealing with now, where a cold sore comes out overnight without any warning and is past the point of not showing up by the time I wake up in the morning. Whenever that happens, I put a little bit of clove bud essential oil on a cotton ball and hold it against the sore for about 30 seconds. It's amazing because it clears the cold sore up faster and also takes the pain and itching away immediately. I have a toddler, so after I apply clove bud oil, I cover the sore with a colloidal patch to keep little hands from bumping into the infected site.

Acetone

Posted by earth is a pancake (chiraq, illinois.) on 09/09/2023
★★★★★

When I read about cold sores and acetone - I thought these people had lost their minds!! ... but this last time I had a bad case sold sore, two locations on lower lip about 5-6 bumps / bulbs, 3-4 of them were getting oversized, I looked horrible - and hurt like a mofo.

I used a q-tip to dip in a home depot purchased acetone container and applied throughout the day starting in the afternoon. Without any exaggeration, and with outmost sincerity, it worked for me. By the end of the day 10 pm or so - the size of the bumps/bulbs decreased to about 25% from the large size of that same morning. I could not believe it. I asked my roommate, just to make sure I was not losing my mind and going blind...

By the next morning, the bumps decreased more in size, and a small scabs started to appear - signaling the healing process has begun... I only applied once or twice the second day.

Don't ingest the powerful acetone, careful breathing in the fumes - I held my breath as much as possible, sealed my lips / mouth while applying with q tip soaked. Acetone evaporates very quickly, so application time is short.. Think I applied about 10 times from afternoon til midnight the first day.

Hope this helps!

Acetone

Posted by V (US) on 11/04/2023
★★★★☆

Be Careful with Acetone!

Acetone is so powerful it will take the paint right off your car!

You are using it to kill the virus, this shouldn't take more than 1 day, once the virus is dead, meaning the cold sores stop growing and developing, you need to stop using acetone, it is used to kill the virus, not to heal the cold sore, the healing process happens naturally, the more you leave it alone the quicker it will heal.

Acetone

Posted by naturalremedies101 (orlando, fl ) on 08/11/2022
★★★★★

My bottom lip was tingling all day. At the end of the day around 6pm, I looked in a zoom-in mirror and could see the horrendous 3 bumps forming. I immediately began applying acetone. I did this for 30 seconds-1 min at a time up every 20-30 minutes up until I went to bed around 10pm. I worked the next day and could still see the bumps, but they did not pop or grow. I went ahead and applied and applied nail polish remover in the morning before going to work and once in the afternoon. When I got home, I applied it again until I went to sleep multiple times. I kept a cotton pad with acetone on until it burned too much. On day 3, there was no longer a coldsore forming! I can't believe this actually worked :)

Acetone

Posted by Sarab (CA) on 12/26/2021

Does acetone make them stay away? Just wondering because I use selenium (selenomethionine) and I don't get cold sores any more. I take 1 200mcg capsule a day although I started by taking 2 200mcg capsules a day for about 10 months.

Camphor

Posted by Rob (Kentucky) on 01/05/2021
★★★★★

Campho-Phenique (Liquid in the green bottle) which you can buy over the counter at any drug store.

Campho-Phenique is an old folk remedy for many skin issues. Camphor is known to have antiviral activity. Studies state that external application of lavender oil mixed with Camphor deactivates both herpes simplex type-1 and herpes simplex type-2 virus. This prevents spreading of the herpes infection.

It works for any type of herpes virus such as cold sores or shingles. Apply with Q-tip to affected area three to four times a day. It dries up the sores immediately.

I got introduced to Campho-Phenique back in the late 70's when I had a mouth ulcer. My parents had a bottle of it in the bathroom cabinet. I dipped a Q-tip into the liquid and rubbed it on the mouth ulcer, waited about a minutes and spit it out. The mouth ulcer was gone by the next day. I've been using this product for other skin issues ever since.

Acetone

Posted by Carolyne (Washington) on 12/15/2024
★★★★★

It's not just the aspartame. I started totally avoiding aspartame and ALL artificial sweeteners years ago, (I never drink sodas either) and I still get a cold sore, every time I get a runny nose-- a cold, the flu (which is RARE), or allergies and Im blowing/wiping my nose a lot!! So I think I need to take Lysine. When they do start to come on-- I SWEAR by the acetone and/or ICE!! Apply the ice cube till it hurts! let it rest a while and do it again, repeat often as soon as you feel that tingle. The virus can't take the cold and it goes away without scabbing...

L-Lysine

Posted by Nancy R. (New Hope, PA) on 08/03/2020
★★★★★

I had persistent fever blisters on my lips for years and years. When I took 500mg lysine/day it quickly solved the problem. I do not get them now.

L-Lysine

Posted by Bethany H. (San Diego, Ca) on 02/10/2019
★★★★★

Editor's Choice

L-lysine for cold sores WORKS!!!

My mom, sisters and I suffer from cold sores- or at least we used to, because we discovered that taking L-lysine stops, actually STOPS cold sores in their tracks. As soon as you feel that “is that a cold sore funny sore feeling “ on your lip or around lips area, start taking L-lysine immediately! Take 1000 mg of L-lysine two to three times a day. So immediately effective and we all carry in our purse and on trips so we have immediate help in case it strikes while you're out and about. I've spent so much money or various cold sore lip creams but this is the best ever! L-lysine.

Apple Cider Vinegar, Clay

Posted by Sheel (New York, Ny) on 07/08/2016
★★★★★

I just experience an amazing recovery from a recurring cold sore. In the past I have used garlic and tried acetone topically, but I noticed that moisture always exacerbated the sore for example taking a shower would be terrible. This time I figured I would dry the heck out of it so I tried using a clay mask mixed with an equal amount of ACV on my developing cold sore. I did it two times a day for two days now and slept with it on my lip overnight and the cold sore completely skipped it's "exploding with pus" stage, dried up and is healing. I hope you try this, it really worked amazingly well for me.

Ice

Posted by Joy (Zimbabwe) on 06/19/2016
★★★★★

I used to suffer terribly with cold sores, until I discovered that holding an ice cube on my lip directly over the tell-tale "tingle" that I came to dread!!! Hold it there until the cube has melted, and hey presto, no more tingle and no outbreak!! This discovery has revolutionised my life... perhaps a bit dramatic, but it sure feels wonderful to no longer suffer with a dreaded fever blister!! :)

Acetone

Posted by Ed (Seattle, Wa) on 01/01/2016
★★★★★

My diet is somewhat acidic. I would experience cold sore attacks every other week. I stopped taking daily multivitamins due to high L-arinine content of solid multivitamin pills. I have been eating roman lettuce, green cabbage, carrots and other vegetables every day starting this summer.

I had only 1 instant of tingling and reddish color on my lower lip where cold sores would appear before. Tingling, inflammation and skin redness went away in minutes after applying acetone.

Acetone

Posted by Josephine (Uk) on 10/20/2013
★★★★★

Just wanted to say that acetone for nose ulcers work very well. Just just a cotton bud dipped it into acetone and applied to the sore for one minute. I did this every moring and niht for two days.. The tinggling sensation went after the second application. Thank you Earth Clinic.

Acetone

Posted by Fmb (Vancouver) on 08/09/2013
★★★★★

YEA Acetone really does work - it's amazing. I wanted to explain a few details I experienced with the acetone treatment.

I've been getting cold sore outbreaks for about 15 years now - I'm 39 - I found that taking 1000mg Lysine daily has kept me free of outbreaks for 4 years - I ran out, didn't take lysine for only 2 days and BAM my upper lip had the start of BIG nasty large vesicles - Couldn't believe it - no prodrome tingling, no warning. It was slightly obsured by my moustache so I didn't really notice it right away. This one just by the initial size was gonna be a major disaster.

I read all the miracle stories about it, so I tried the acetone on a cotton swab placed directly onto the sore for 5min at a time every 30min for the first day. To stop evaporation I used clear packing tape to press the swab right onto the sore. Don't be afraid to PRESS the acetone into the sore - it will burn bad but it's like you can also feel the acetone destroying the HSV inside.

The next morning I woke up and I thought Lisa Rinna's plastic surgeon had snuck into my bed and plumped up my lip with silicone - It was HUGE, I actually laughed in the mirror because it looked so ridiculous. However, the sore had gone directly to scab healing stage.

The following morning the swelling had almost completely gone and after my shower the scab had worn off and the final pink healing scab remained. So literally 48 hours from the start of what was to be a colossal large sore on my lip it's already to the point of what normally takes about 10 days to get to.

1000mg Lysine daily is the long-term cure you want to get on - but if you miss a Lysine and one pops up Acetone is what you need 100% - Do not even bother with anything else and start it as soon as you see or feel one coming on.

Acetone is also totally safe for your skin - read up about it on wikipedia - It's even used as a food additive!

Garlic

Posted by Anon (Australia) on 07/04/2013
★★★★★

YEA to garlic, ice and honey for cold sores. I tend to get cold sores on my lips when I'm run-down and haven't been sleeping and/or eating very well. I usually don't get a tingling sensation until after the little monster rears it ugly head, the only sign I have to go off is dry, chapped lips, which can easily be attributed to the winter weather.

Noticed the tiny, tingly/itchy bump when I woke up a yesterday and freaked out because I'm volunteering at a week-long event starting tomorrow and didn't want a massive blister in the centre of my bottom lip. I usually use Zovirax but that usually takes over a week to heal and even then has left small blemishes/scars.

I read on another site about the garlic remedy and decided to test it out. Cut a clove of garlic in half and crushed it to release the juices, then held it over the bump for about thirty seconds. Burned like no tomorrow, but the tingling sensation was gone and never came back. Once the burning sensation had died, I soaked some paper towel and dabbed it clean before applying honey. Repeated every few hours. Next day, no blister! Just a small scab that's a good half or third the size of my usual sores.

Came here to see what other natural remedies could be added to the program, but I don't fancy the idea of popping or invading the wound to apply solutions for fear of infection and chemical solutions like acetone or hydrogen peroxide scare me. At any rate, I now use a clove of garlic, followed by a cube of ice, dab it dry and then add a touch of honey, applied every couple of hours. Swelling is pretty much non-existent and there is no tingling or itchiness at all. From the looks of things it'll be gone in a day or two! (Fastest recovery time ever! )

Ear Wax

Posted by Gladys (Boise, Idaho) on 08/18/2009
★★★★★

My Mother suffered from cold sores, My Great grandmother always said use your own ear wax. Grandma was from the Old Country..When I got married my husband suffered with cold sores, So I told him what grandma used to say to mom. Use your ear wax. After many Years of going thru this. I told him again and also saying i will not tell you again and to just suffer. Well to my surprise he tried it and from then on. he was telling all of his friends. My last words were not to lick your lips.