For many people, a big occasion -- especially one that comes with a hefty dose of stress -- is a surefire guarantee for the appearance of a cold sore. Cold sores are caused by the herpes simplex virus, which lies dormant between attacks only to appear during bouts of stress or illness, two common precipitators of the disorder. Between 30 to 90 percent of people have antibodies to the virus, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information. Some vitamins may help prevent or treat cold sore outbreaks. Ask your doctor for advice on dosages.
Uses
There is no cure for the herpes virus, which is always present in the body once you contract the infection. Since cold sores cause embarrassment as well as discomfort, over-the-counter vitamin treatments that reduce the symptoms have benefit for cold sore sufferers.
Vitamins That May Help
Vitamin C, often taken to prevent or decrease cold symptoms, may have some benefit in treating cold sores, but the studies that have tested its benefits are quite old and no new studies have been done. Vitamin C acts as an antioxidant, meaning it protects cells from damage by unpaired electrons called free radicals, produced by toxins and other potentially damaging chemicals. Vitamin E is also an antioxidant that may have some benefit in treating cold sores caused by the herpes simplex virus. Like the studies for vitamin C, the studies reporting a benefit for the treatment are all quite old.
Vitamin C Studies
A study reported in the January 1978 issue of "Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine and Oral Pathology" compared the use of a mixture of vitamin C, also called ascorbic acid, and bioflavonoids with placebo. Oral treatments were given for three days after the onset of symptoms. Subjects who took the vitamin C mixture had reduced blistering compared to those who took placebo. Results were best when the treatment was started in the prodromal phase, before the blisters appear. While all patients receiving placebo developed blisters, only 26 percent of those receiving the vitamin C mixture did, Dr. Melvyn R. Werbach reported in the March 1995 issue of the "International Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine." The duration of symptoms was reduced from 9.7 days in the placebo group to 4.2 to 4.4 days in the treated group, Werbach said.
Vitamin E Studies
Opening a vitamin E capsule and dabbing the topical vitamin E directly on the cold sore lesions provides pain relief in as little as 15 minutes to eight hours, according to several studies published in the "British Dental Journal," one in 1976 and one in 1980. According to a 2006 article published in "Alternative Medicine Review" by Dr. Alan Gaby, the uncontrolled studies used between 20,000 and 28,000
international units per ounce of vitamin E, placing it directly on the lesion for 15 minutes at a time. For large or multiple blisters, treating three times daily for three day achieved the best results, including the most pain relief and faster regression of the lesions.
References
- University of Michigan Health System: Cold Sores; December 2009
- Linus Pauling Institute: Vitamin C; Jane Higdon, Ph.D; January 2006
- "Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine and Oral Pathology"; The Use of Water-soluble Bioflavonoid-ascorbic Acid Complex in the Treatment of Recurrent Herpes Labialis; G. Terezhalmy et al.; January 1978
- "Alternative Medicine Review"; Natural Remedies for Herpes Simplex; Alan Gaby, M.D.; 2006
- Self Health: Nutritional Influences on Illness Herpes Simplex ; Melvyn R. Werbach M.D.; March 1995
