If you or someone you know suffers from cold sores or fever blisters, these natural remedies for healing cold sores are sure to help! Two easy essential oil and herbal recipes included…
Our Story
I’m gonna be honest, up until 3 years ago I didn’t know the difference between canker sore and a cold sore. Call me sheltered, but as far as I knew they were the same thing: small sores in the mouth. No big deal. But when my baby girl broke out with painful sores all over her mouth and gums, I was afraid she had some awful rare disease.
After talking with a few mom friends the verdict was in: herpes.Â
Whaaaa? How could my sweet little 1 year old get herpes? Wasn’t that an STD? No freakin’ way, José.
But aforementioned mom friends also assured me that HSV-1 (a.k.a. cold sores or fever blisters) was actually pretty common, and not really anything to worry about.Â
What is herpes?
Even though it comes from the same family of viruses, herpes simplex virus 1 is not the same as herpes simplex virus 2. While HSV-2 is considered a sexually transmitted disease, HSV-1 is primarily transmitted by oral-oral contact. Just like and STD though, HSV-1 is very contagious. My daughter contracted it by sharing a sippy cup with a friend who was infected (we didn’t know the friend had HSV-1 at the time).Â
HSV-1 is one of the most common types of the herpes virus. While the symptoms (the sores) aren’t always visible, that doesn’t mean the virus is gone. The virus will live dormant inside a person’s immune system their whole life, causing periodic break outs in blisters when the immune system is stressed.
When left alone, herpes cold sores usually last about two weeks. They are uncomfortable and may be accompanied with a low-grade fever or sore throat. During an outbreak the virus is contagious.
While the virus that causes herpes is not curable, there are quite a few natural remedies for healing cold sores that can help keep herpes in remission.Â
Step 1: A healthy diet.
The number one way to keep herpes (or any virus) at bay is to keep your immune system strong by eating a healthy diet. Foods rich in vitamins B & C, zinc, the amino acid L-lysine, and omega-3s are wonderful ways to make sure your immune system is strong. On the other hand, foods that are highly inflammatory, such as sugars, processed foods, alcohol, and foods high in carbs can damage or tear down your immune system. It’s important to stay off these, as well.
Here are a few recipes made with foods high in vitamins B & C, zinc, L-lysine, and omega-3s that we eat regularly.
- White Chicken Chili in the Instant Pot or Slow Cooker
- Crispy Coconut Pan-Fried Salmon
- Simple Herbed Red Drum
- Simple Green Salad with Leftover Turkey and Homemade Ranch
- Paleo Sweet & Sour Chicken
- Chicken Fajitas in the Instant Pot
- 1-Ingredient Carrot Fettuccini
- Dairy-Free Macaroni & Cheese
- Carrot Orange Smoothie
- Creamy Roasted Red Pepper, Sausage & Cauliflower Soup
- Spinach & Garlic Meatballs in the Instant Pot
- Mint Chocolate Chip Blender Ice Cream
- No-Bake Banana Walnut Brownies
Along with the right foods, it’s also important to stay hydrated, get adequate rest, and keep your stress level as low as possible. (So easy, I know!)
Step 2: Supplements.
Though my family eats a relatively healthy diet, there are still times when our immune systems need a little extra something. If anyone in my family starts to feel run down, we start pumping her immune system with these natural boosters.
Below are our go-to supplements. They are all extremely helpful for people who struggle with HSV-1, but are also good for any virus.
- Vitamin B complex
- Vitamin C
- Cod liver oil
- Herbal, Immune-Boosting Sore Throat Tea
- Easy Immune Support Tincture
- Elderberry syrup (make sure the only sweetener is honey or stevia!)
- Propolis
If an outbreak has occurred – as soon as the symptoms appear – these supplements help the body heal quickly:
- Hyland’s Homeopathic Cold Sores & Fever Blisters
- Cold Sore & Fever Blister Essential Oil Blend (recipe from my friend below)
- Cold Sore & Fever Blister Herbal Infusion (recipe below)
Bottom line: a strong immune system is your best bet to fight off any infection, including an outbreak from HSV-1.
In the recipe card I’ve linked to some of the products from my affiliate partners that I like to use. Purchasing through these links won’t cost you anything extra. Thanks!
Cold Sore & Fever Blister Essential Oil Blend
Free from grain, gluten, eggs, dairy, and sugar.
Ingredients
- carrier oil (fractionated coconut oil works well)
- 30 drops melaleuca oil
- 25 drops Roman chamomile, eucalyptus AND lavender oil
- 20 drops each peppermint, oregano, lemon, ginger AND sandalwood oil
Instructions
Combine ingredients in a dark glass roller bottle (like these ones).
Apply 3x a day directly to sores to control outbreaks. We roll a little on our finger and then apply it.
Do not apply to sores within the mouth, only on external sores.
Note on essential oils:
Although there are many good quality essential oil brands I’ve used before, I use Plant Therapy and Young Living almost exclusively.
Cold Sore & Fever Blister Herbal Infusion
Free from grain, gluten, eggs, dairy, and sugar.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon each dried chamomile, nettle, sage, peppermint, licorice root, AND echinacea
- 2 tablespoons elderberries
Instructions
Bring water to a boil.
Place herbs in a bowl and mix to combine. Add 1 heaping tablespoon of mixture to a large mug or liquid measuring cup.
Pour 1 cup boiling water over herbs and let sit – covered – until cooled.
Strain out herbs and stir in a teaspoon of honey, if desired.
Note on herbs:
I purchase my herbs on Amazon or grow them myself (well, my daughter grows them, actually). If you have another trusted source for quality herbs, feel free to use them. I purchase my herbs from Frontier Herbs or Starwest Botanicals.
Fantastic advice Raia! My oldest picked up this virus in kindergarten (just. so. many. germs!) and she can tell when she is getting one now so we bump her lysine and use the Hyland’s you mentioned and it very rarely fully forms. They are so painful! I am going to make some of that oil blend for her! Thanks!
You’re so welcome, Renee! It is so sad to see our kiddos have to go through this. I hope the EO blend works well for your daughter!
These remedies are so comprehensive! Saving this for later – very helpful!
Thank you, Mary!
Thanks for this, got some useful tips I haven’t heard before. I’ve found l-lysine supplementation helps internally, and sea salt mixed with MCT oil is also quite useful applied topically.
Glad you’ve found natural things that help!
So many great ideas! I can;t wait to put some of them to use the next time we deal with these pesky buggers!
I hope you find the tips helpful, Tessa!
Such a great herbal remedy. Cold sores are so painful & difficult to get rid of & it is awesome to have a natural solution.
Thanks, Stacey!
I’ll have to try this! I love natural remedies and I never knew cold sores could be treated with essential oils.
I hope you find it helpful, Jean!
Cold sores are the worst! I’ll keep these recipes in mind in case someone in my house needs them.
I hope you find them helpful, Annemarie!
Love these remedies – cold sores are such a pain – quite literally! 🙂 I treat them with essential oils they really do work well, I have some friends who get them so will pass your recipes on to them!
Thank you, Hope!
This is great timing, thank you! I have a good friend who deals with this every once in a while (and has one right now), and I haven’t researched remedies. It’s great to know what works!
I hope she finds these helpful, Megan!
You are so knowledgeable. I always learn so much from you!
Aw, thank you, ChihYu!
I’ve used the Hyland Homeopathic remedy with herb clients for years with success along with a simple herb remedy:
THE herb to combat/heal cold sores ? Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) is the go to herb for herbalists around the world. Yes there are others but Lemon Balm is ‘specific’ for herpes issues. You may want to make a coconut oil infused with lemon balm salve. Lemon balm tea. Lemon balm in a salve with beeswax and some immune boosters like echinacea, oregano. Licorice also a good addition to the mix. I make a few combinations dependent upon particular situations — they ALWAYS include Lemon Balm. Do you grow any, by chance? Mint family member.. easy to grow.
That’s awesome, Carol! Thank you SO much for sharing your knowledge with us! I don’t grow lemon balm, and I don’t think I have ever used it. I will definitely get some to add to my herbal tea. I do add licorice, it is such a useful herb!
You are most welcome, Raia! Those pesky cold sores can really be painful!
Lemon Balm is SO easy to grow. If you can find some, you’ll love it! Delicious too. I have many recipes! Later this summer, do harvest a little and infuse in coconut oil to have on hand and try it next time there’s a need!! xo
I will definitely keep a lookout for a plant to add to my garden! Thank you!
I wasn’t aware of home remedies for this, so thanks so much for sharing your knowledge!
Glad to share, Jennifer!