What about cold sores on lip? This question is asked by anyone who develops this infectious mouth disease, which takes the form of small bubbles visible on the surface of the skin—herpes simplex.

Herpes is an unpleasant, itchy, painful lesion on the lips that takes a long time to heal. It is commonly called “cold”. Herpes is usually contracted in childhood. The culprit for this disease is the herpes simplex virus called HSV – Herpex Simplex Virus. How can cold sores be cured? Is it possible to cure it completely?

Herpes – what is it?

Herpes is the generic name for herpetic infections. It is a skin eruption that appears most often in the area of ​​the labia. This change is caused by HSV1 and HSV2 viruses from the Herpes simplex virus group. This infection is quite common and occurs most often in childhood (HSV1) or during sexual contact with an infected partner (HSV2). It is people who are the only source of infection with the herpes virus. Every person with this unpleasant ailment at least once is its carrier until the end of life. Some people experience this condition completely asymptomatically. Cold sores usually appear on the lips.

Herpes on the lips – how do you get infected with the virus?

Herpes appearing on the lips and around them is caused by the type 1 virus. Once infected – we are carriers of the virus for the rest of our lives and in periods of weakened immunity, it becomes active, giving unpleasant symptoms. Infection can occur in utero, and after birth through direct contact with the person carrying the virus (e.g. touch, kiss) or with personal belongings (using the same cup, towel, etc.).

Herpes on the lips – what is conducive to infection with the virus?

The factors contributing to infection with the herpes virus include not only direct contact with an infected person, but also:

1. Weakened immunity,
2. Smoking tobacco,
3. Upper respiratory tract infections,
4. Treatment with immunosuppressants,
5. Improper diet, lacking vitamins (mainlyB vitamins).

Herpes infection can take the following forms:

1. herpetic encephalitis,
2. herpetic meningitis,
3. herpetic eczema,
4. herpetic eye disease,
5. herpetic vesicular dermatitis,
6. herpetic pharyngitis and tonsillitis,
7. herpetic vesicular dermatitis,
8. other forms of herpes infection.

Relatives and friends of herpes

As for the herpes virus, we never know the day or time when it will attack us. According to some estimates, up to 90% of the population is its carriers. It has not yet been investigated why only a small fraction of these 90% suffer from cold sores, but it is known that the first episode of painful eruptions around the lip or nose can occur at any time. If we are happy that we have not had herpes all our lives, unfortunately, there is no certainty that it will stay that way.

When the virus is not engaged in disfiguring our mouths, it lives in a latent or latent form at the nerve endings, e.g. in the sensory ganglia around the spine.

Another interesting fact is that herpes is a very close relativeof chicken poxandshingles. It is really hard to imagine a family whose visit would be more unpleasant to us. Worse still, if you are unlucky, you can experience all of these illnesses in your life, with herpes so many times over.

Because it is different with herpes. It may never manifest itself, although the virus is dormant in our ganglia, it may emerge once and remain silent forever, and it may recur even every two weeks. And there is still no cure.

Herpes – symptoms

As the HSV 1 virus can manifest itself under the influence of changes in the hormonal balance, some women, as an additional attraction, in addition to their period, have a painful and unsightly lesion on their lips every month.

This is the meaning of herpes life:every now and then, when properly stimulated, it crawls from the depths of the nerves to the surface of the skin, most often it is the lip border, where it first makes itself felt by burning and aching, then explodes with tiny, itchy and painful blisters swollen with liquid, and then turns into into a scab that disappears after the next few days. How well it goes without leaving a scar. Bubbles formed on the lip are filled with serous content and then with purulent discharge, which, as previously mentioned, turns into a scab. Before the painful blisters appear, you may experience tingling, burning, itching and a slight pain. The symptoms of the skin and mucous membranes are very similar to each other. It is not uncommon in the course of herpes in the infected person to enlarge the lymph nodes.

Genital herpes is slightly less common (the infection may be primary or recurrent). Primary infection is usually severe. The most common infection occurs after sexual contact with an asymptomatic host. After the incubation period of the infection (3-7 days), women and men develop general symptoms, such as: headache, high temperature and muscle pain. In men, blister-like skin eruptions are located on the penis or (rarely) on the inside of the thighs or the scrotum. In women, on the other hand, follicles develop on the labia, the vagina, the perineum, and even the cervix. Occasionally, there are other symptoms, such as mucus from the urethra or vagina, and enlargement of the inguinal lymph nodes.

Symptoms of herpes infection appear from 1 to even 26 days after contact with the source of the infection. However, this period is usually around seven days.

Herpes is most often contagious in the active phase, i.e. when eruptions appear around the lip in the form of bubbles filled with fluid. This is where viruses are found. When the morning dries up, the scab loses its greatest firepower.

It is worth remembering that herpes symptoms may reappear as a result of external factors, in the form of:

1. menstruation
2. chills the body,
3. stress,
4. weakening of the body,
5. tooth removal,
6. fatigue,
7. malnutrition,
8. exposure to strong solar radiation.

Complications after herpes

An episode of herpes lasts four to ten days. It seems that worse things happen than a few pimples on the lip for a week, and of course they are, but despite the low health harm (a little worse with the social because the virus spreads very easily), the HSV 1 virus cannot be taken lightly.

First of all, be careful not to transport it from the lip to the eye, because it can causeinflammation of the corneaor even ulceration, which may result in blindness. So while a woman does not have to throw away lipsticks, which she used during herpes eruption, because she is infected with the virus anyway, the eye of the infected person is “clean” and it should be ensured that it remains so. Therefore, it is best to wash your hands thoroughly after each contact of your fingers with the herpes eruption.

To speed up the healing of cold sores, use Cannadent Regenerating Serum . It contains cloves, hemp oil and Siberian fir extract accelerate healing and have an analgesic and antibacterial effect.

Very rarely, but it does happen that on its way to the lips, a virus that starts out from the ganglia wanders towards the head. May cause meningitis or encephalitis; very difficult to heal. And even when cured, it has unpleasant neurological consequences. The symptoms may resemble a hatching flu, so you must remember that God is guarding the guarded.

Not only because of complications, but also frequent relapses, it is worth performing mail-order tests for herpes infection. The swab is taken from the cheek, and the waiting time for the results is 7 working days.

Herpes in children

Children and people with reduced immunity and a weakened immune system are particularly vulnerable to more complicated forms of herpes. In children, and it is important to know, whose infection with the virus usually occurs before the age of 5, herpes can manifest asstomatitis. Newborns are also at risk, because their mothers have not suffered from herpes and therefore have not passed on antibodies to them. Such babies need to be especially protected against those suffering from herpes. In turn, in people with low immunity, the virus can attack internal organs and manifest itself in the form of extensive ulcers on the body.

When encephalitis is on the horizon, the pimples above the lip do appear in a slightly brighter light than before. Maybe this is a method to tame the hated herpes?

However effective it is to tame her, you need to know what to do to heal her. Often, patients do not come to the doctor with herpes, asking themselves what to do with herpes and relying on over-the-counter preparations available in pharmacies.

Diagnosis of herpes

In general, the diagnosis of herpes is based on the patient’s overall clinical picture (present symptoms) or after gynecological and urological incidence (genital herpes). It happens, however, that a specialist has diagnostic doubts, which is why in such situations he uses the following tests:

1. detection of HSV DNA virus using the PCR method – this method is very sensitive; a negative test result does NOT exclude infection;
2. isolation of HSV virus in cell culture – this test is mainly used in the diagnosis of genital herpes; here likewise, a negative result does not rule out infection;
3. serological test – antibodies to HSV appear in human blood a few weeks after infection. Detection of anti-HSV2 antibodies most often indicates genital herpes, while detecting only HSV1 will be more difficult to assess as cold sores are very common.

You should also remember about differential diagnosis.Oropharyngeal herpes is differentiated from:

1. candidiasis,
2. Coxsackie infection,
3. erythema multiforme (Stevens-Johnson disease)
4. aphthous inflammation,
5. enteroviral inflammation.

In contrast, genital herpes should be differentiated from:

1. shingles,
2. syphilis_
3. venereal ulcer.

What about cold sores? Treatment and prevention

What about cold sores? A lot can be done with the help of various preparations available at the pharmacy. But in the case of frequently recurring herpes eruptions, it is worth considering not only an emergency treatment, i.e. focused on drying and eliminating vesicles and scabs as quickly as possible, but a longer therapy with a prescribed antiviral drug. If it goes well, the frequency of episodes will decrease after such an intensive treatment, and maybe even for a long time we will be able to forget about herpes.

In the case of herpes, time is of the essence: the faster we react, i.e. catch the earliest symptoms, the greater the chance that they will be milder.

In addition, it is good to learn to recognize the factors that trigger cold sores from the forest, that is, from the sensory ganglia of the nervous system. Belong to them:

1. sunlight,
2. low temperature,
3. stress,
4. weakness,
5. cold,
6. menstruation.

It is also worth taking care of the immune system; its strengthening will certainly thwart herpes in her evil plans. It may be a consolation to know that scientists are working on a vaccine against this thug stalking our face.

If you have problems with recurring cold sores, reach for a dietary supplement with lysine , which strengthens the body and supports the formation of antibodies, minimizing the risk of recurrent herpes.

Unfortunately, sometimes even a slight weakening of the body’simmunity, e.g. due to insufficient sleep,stress, cold or poor nutrition, is enough for the virus to become active. In women, this activation often occurs beforemenstruation, when the well-being is slightly worse. First, itchy redness appears, and after about 2 days, fluid-filled blisters appear. The vesicles then burst, and the areas left by them are very difficult to heal, the wounds are painful and often erosive.

To make sure you are not a virus carrier, do a diagnostic test for the presence of the herpes virus in your body .

The classic treatment of herpes involves topical administration of antiviral drugs (ointments, gels), most often containing acyclovir, and in the case of more severe infections, the doctor also prescribes this antiviral substance in the form of tablets. Herpes symptoms can last up to 2-3 weeks, although they usually last shorter in the case of recurrent infections.

Remember that you can’t always deal with cold sores on your own. If the problem recurs or lasts a long time, consult your doctor.

IMPORTANT

Home remedies for cold sores on the lips – natural treatments

Herpes medications are not contraindicated in pregnant women or children. On the other hand, herpes symptoms are very severe, itchy and painful. How to help yourself in this situation in a safe, home-made, preferably natural way? Here are some provenhome remedies for herpes on the lipsthat are worth trying.

Home remedies for cold sores – dry zinc paste and baking soda paste

One of the traditional and safe, low-priced over-the-counter medications available at the pharmacy is zinc paste, which is worth keeping at home just in case. It is safe for children and pregnant women. Applying thezinc pastedries the herpes lesion and promotes faster healing.

However, if we cannot buy it, a drying and smoothing white paste that accelerates thehealing ofherpesand we make it frombaking soda– just mix it with a small amount of boiled, cooled water.

Home remedies for cold sores – fluoride toothpaste

A method that has been known for years is applying fluoridetoothpaste on herpes – the toothpaste itself dries the lesion a bit, and fluoride can interfere with the virus’s activity.However, this method is not suitable for use with young children.

Home remedies for cold sores – garlic, onions, honey and oils

Garlic, onion andhoneyare natural and safe antiviral products. You often hear recommendations to put a cut clove of garlic on the herpes, a piece of onion or smear the bloom with honey. Garlic itself is hot and can irritate the delicate skin of the lips, and so is onion. However, it is worth combining the strength of garlic, onion and honey in a hand-grated liniment against herpes.

Grind the crushed garlic clove in a mortar with a small amount of honey, a few drops of onion juice and it is best to add a bitof cod liver oilorolive oil, which contain anti-inflammatory omega-3 acids and vitamins that support the regeneration of the epidermis.

Black seed oilis an oil that has not only strong anti-inflammatory properties, but also antiviral properties, and it is also worth considering adding it to this recipe if you have it at home. The liniment prepared in this way will definitely support our fight against the virus and shorten the duration of the infection.

Home remedies for cold sores – essential oils with antiviral properties

Tea tree and lemon balmoils have proven antiviral properties . They can be applied gently onthe herpes lesionor added to the above-described liniment.

Cinnamon oil also has antiviral properties, but is highly irritating and should never be used undiluted directly on the skin. You can dilute it in base oil or add a drop to the recipe presented earlier – you can also add a little freshly groundcinnamonto the liniment .

Home remedies for cold sores – tea compresses

Due to the fact that tea contains tannins with astringent properties, you can put a sachet of warm tea to your mouth. Just brew it (preferably choose black tea), and then wait until it cools down. The sachet can be applied to the mouth several times a day, also using ointments to get rid of the viral lesion as soon as possible.

Home remedies for herpes – lemon

Lemon contains and is therefore often used during colds as an addition to warming tea or a drink to alleviate the symptoms of the disease. Due to its antiviral properties, the fruit can also be used to treat cold sores. It is enough to put a lemon slice to your mouth several times a day. You will supply the body with a strengthening dose of vitamin C.

Ways for herpes – vinegar

Vinegar has similar properties to lemon, although it does not contain vitamin C. Thanks to the acids contained in it, it can be used as a remedy against herpes. However, due to its drying effect, care should be taken when applying vinegar to the skin. It is best to dip the cotton bud in the liquid and then put it only on the wound.

Herpes on the lips – how to avoid its recurrence?

In addition to these home remedies for cold sores, it is also worth learning how to prevent herpes from coming back. First of all, we should avoid stressful situations as well as unfavorable weather conditions that may favor the relapse of the virus. However, if we cannot prevent it, we should properly care for the skin, its hydration, and enrich the diet with products containing B vitamins.

In addition, the risk of developing the herpes virus increases in the fall and winter, so we should reach for probiotics that will strengthen our immunity and thus protect us against HSV.