Top Natural Remedies for Cold Sores (Fever Blisters)

Baking Soda

Posted by Jay (Altoona, FL) on 06/25/2008
★★★★★

I found that the virus that causes cold sores does not like bicarbonate of soda. I was usually able to half the time to heal by applying the soda to the open lesion several times a day.

Vitamin E

Posted by Sue (Rochester, NY) on 05/07/2008
★★★★★

Try a dab of Vitamin E Oil several times a day at the first sign of a cold sore - it has worked great for me. The sore starts to dry up right away and is usually gone within 2 days.

Dietary Recommendations

Posted by Shandra (Sacramento, CA) on 06/10/2007
★★★★★

About seven years ago I dated a guy who came with a prize, undisclosed to me! Within the first month I was breaking out. The first time was the worst; I experienced pain like no other, I quickly proceeded to visit my doctor who wasted no time to diagnose me with this lovely virus. I was getting large embarrassing blisters round my mouth at least 4-5 times a year and I would have genital outbreaks about 10 times a year... I seriously went into depression, gained weight and stopped having a life. I was embarrassed knowing that I could never address the issue with a potential counterpart and of course I could not be irresponsible, as the guy who was irresponsible with me. What have I done? How have things changed in my life? Well number one, I started a regular exercise program. I run 3-4 times a week. I topped eating processed meals - (no restaurants, no fast food, no packages, no cans, no boxes, and no microwave popcorn, nothing out of a package, nothing frozen). So what am I eating? I eat fruits all day, until I gag. I eat Vegetables all day, until I gag. I eat oats and whole wheat, in the form of "old fashioned oatmeal", "wheat bread" 'brown rice", you get the picture. I eat meat two to three times a week, mostly chicken and once or twice a month I eat fish. I keep beef to a minimum. I eat a variety of mixed nuts. . these are RAW nuts . almonds, peanuts with skin, cashews, sunflower, flax seed, pumpkin seed . you get the idea. I stopped drinking wine, coffee, tea and I stopped smoking. I drink water all day long, till I gag. I drink 8oz of milk daily and I drink home made smoothies and juices and vegetable juice. I take prenatal vitamins (I am not pregnant). Since, I am a girl and I have sugar cravings. guess what. there is honey. I use natural honey on toast, on my Oatmeal, in my milk.you get the idea.

I try to exclude white table sugar, white table salt, white flour, sodium, cholesterol, fats. But I don't count the natural sugars in fruits and the oils in the nuts. The only thing I really track is my protein intake; I try to make sure I have enough protein daily. (Protein is balanced according to ones height, weight, gender, activity level)

Since I started paying attention to my body, eating what my body needs, dinking what my body needs and taking all the vitamins that my body needs: I have not had an outbreak in over one year. ALSO, I have lost weight, I feel better than I have ever felt in my entire life. At 43, I feel that I am in GREAT shape! Of course I still need to overcome my fears of having a difficult conversation with the possibility of a rejection, which is something I will have to live with the rest of my life.

This seems to work for me. If you would like to try something similar please consult your doctor prior to making any changes in your diet. Good luck!

Triggers

Posted by Leslie (Philadelphia, PA) on 05/24/2007
★★★★★

I have always noted that body temperature changes cause my oral herpes cold sores to flare up. Tanning beds, vacations to warm areas, having a fever, or exposure to sudden drops/increases in the weather have caused outbreaks within days. I now skip the tanning, and avoid being outside in extreme hot or cold weather.

Tinactin (Foot Spray)

Posted by Wellington (Quincy, WA) on 01/14/2007
★★★★★

I used this product called "Tinactin" (its an athletes foot spray) I used it for 3 days morning and night .I sprayed it on and let it dry,(I used it because Tinactin has an anti itch medicine in it )after the 3rd day the blisters were gone and i have not had an out break for about 1 year.

Neem Leaves or Oil

Posted by Marie (FL) on 09/25/2006
★★★★★

A couple years ago the doctor said i had HSV I have a friend who believes in a lot of natural remedies, she told me of Neem leaves she said it cleared up her HPV and she did research that showed it is toxic to certain viruses. I have taken neem and can tell you it does work. Either it really masks the virus from being transmitted or from having outbreaks. since taking it there has been no outbreaks. I have been doing research online and a lot of sites say that it is indeed toxic to the hsv virus. I believe there is a cure out there that they don't want us to know about and i think neem is one of them.

Tea Tree Oil

Posted by Jenny (Toronto)
★★★★★

I use organic tea tree oil on my lips when I get the beginnings of an outbreak and it is gone within 24-36 hours. (i apply 3-4x/day).

also, an acidic body will give you an outbreak quickly. Look into the acid alkaline balance. Cheese and coffee does it for me every time.

Hydrogen Peroxide

Posted by AJ (Bamberg, SC)
★★★★★

I used to get outbreaks on my lip at least a couple times a year with an unsightly scab that lasted about a week. I went through a period where I got them once a month like clockwork and it gave me plenty of chances to try all the remedies. Here are things that DON'T work.... Lysine, Bleach, Lysol, Abreva.... Here is the one that works... As soon as there is a blister, poke it with a pin and drain it. Then soak a small tissue in Hydrogen Peroxide and hold the tissue in over the blister site for at least two hours. After doing this, I have only had 2 outbreaks in 5 years and both were kept so small, that they were not even visible to others and no scab to follow.

Ear Wax

Posted by Annie (Washington) on 03/25/2024
★★★★★

My partner is prone to cold sores, and after I found earwax suggested on EC, he tried it and IT WORKS! Amen for folk medicine, and this website!

Oregano Oil

Posted by crystal (TX) on 02/14/2024
★★★★★

Oil of oregano heals fever blisters within days. I actually put the oil in the wound itself and then take 300 mg twice daily.

L-Lysine

Posted by Another Mom (San Diego, CA) on 03/23/2023
★★★★★

L-lysine for cold sores WORKS! All my siblings get cold sores and around 10 years ago one of us discovered that L-Lysine 1000mg 3 x day as soon as you feel that tingle/pain and even AFTER one has erupted. Then reduce to 500 mg 3 x d for a few more days. By that time all should be well.

If one sore has emerged, then it goes away quickly - if it hasn't then the L-Lysine makes it go away fast.

I keep a bottle of it in my vehicle, as we know those suckers can strike at any time & don't wait until you have some on hand.

Reading through the posts, some take it daily. I heard you should ONLY take it when needed and prolonged use is not good for you, other posts say it can affect the liver-so be careful out there, do your research, and if confirmed, only take for a few days to a week.

DMSO

Posted by Kristi LMT (Moore, OK) on 03/03/2023
★★★★★

2 drops of 99.9% DMSO with 2 drops of reverse osmosis water on a q-tip. Apply to cold sore area. With 1 application, mine was completely gone in 4-6 hours. It was applied within hours of the start of it.

Ear Wax

Posted by Sandy (Chapel Hill, NJ) on 11/23/2022
★★★★★

Ear wax 100% works and I'm so glad I found this remedy. The key is to get to it early and it will stop it from every getting visible. But even if you miss the early stages and wake up with one, ear wax still drastically cuts down how long its around. I find, now that I know this, the max a cold sore will be around for me is 48-72 hours and usually they aren't noticeable at all. The only unfortunate thing with this remedy is you're likely to not have/produce enough ear wax to apply ear wax multiple times.

L-Lysine and Vitamin C

Posted by Aviva (Tel Aviv (Gosh Dan)) on 11/16/2022
★★★★★

I came up with the tingling feeling of a cold sore. There it was. on my upper lip. I took 4 grams Lysine per day + natural vitamin C 4000 mg per day and put some coconut oil on the blister. It stopped growing and tingling immediately and the blister began drying quickly. Now it is the 3rd day and only a wound remained.

Acetone

Posted by beverly (USA) on 10/29/2023

Acetone is not the safest chemical in the world so I would use a q tip so as to target the sore better rather than a cotton ball.

acetonefaq.pdf (delaware.gov)

Ketchup

Posted by Whathadhappendedwas (Florida) on 07/07/2022
★★★★★

I usually get the big cold sores that make your lip look like a balloon. It sucks. I was eating spaghetti and noticed the sauce made my lip fill better. Did a search about tomato sauce and herpes to see if there was others who tried or used it. Came across a video that said to use ketchup. It was a boring video but decided to try it...Ole family recipe or something. Anyways grabbed some ketchup and put it on my lips. Guess I know what lipstick feels like. I don't know. I put a lot of ketchup on and just started watching a movie. It tingled a little, more uncomfortable I guess. But I left it on and after about 44 minutes I could feel a cluster in the back of my jaw get zapped. Not really sure how else to explain it. Provided relied though. Provided relief for the swollen lip too. Felt like it was working and decided to put a fresh batch and leave it on all night.

Woke up the next morning and it wasn't swollen anymore. Already formed scabs and started healing. Few days later my lip was back to normal. For the healing, I put Abreva on. I typically get blisters from the sun. Haven't had any in a couple months. Might be my new go to as Apple Cider Vinegar sucks. Ketchup is everywhere! Won't hurt to try. Says to use it at the tingle stage to prevent them too.