How to Prevent Cold Sores
These painful and unsightly outbreaks often seem random, but if you've had one, they will appear again and again. 80% of people get these. There are preventive steps you can take. Here's what works for me to keep outbreaks to only one or two a year.
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Instructions
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Eat yogurt everyday. Have it with your breakfast fruit or with lunch or as an afternoon snack. However you manage it, just be sure to eat it daily.
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Take one or two lysine tablets daily.
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Take care of your lips. Wear a lip ointment with sunscreen in it when out in the sun. Don't let your lips get dry and cracked. Use any brand of ointment for this. Don't pick at dry skin on the lips.
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Be aware of triggers for cold sores and try to figure out what causes outbreaks for you. Cut back or avoid the ones that cause you the most problems. Here are some standard cold sore instigators: extreme sun exposure, stress, high acid foods like tomatoes, a cold, feeling run down, hormonal changes like the menstrual period. Sometimes it's a combination of factors that trigger the cold sore outbreak.
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There are prescription anti-viral medicine for this (Denavir and Zovirax). I find one over-the-counter ointment really stops a cold sore when it first starts to tingle and burn. That one is Abreva. The price is much higher than other ointments on the shelves, but it is worth it to me to have the cold sore stopped in just one day.
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Tips & Warnings
A cold sore is easily spread, so avoid touching it and then touching another body part like rubbing your eye or touching your nose.
Avoid kissing anyone or being intimate when you have a cold sore.
Resources
- Photo Credit Virginia Allain
