Cold soreness is a common viral infection due to the presence of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), which causes small, fluid-filled blisters on or around the lips. They can also affect your cheeks, nose, and chin. Cold sores can be triggered by fever, stress, sunlight, or a weakened immune system.
How Commonly Do People Get Cold Sores?
Cold sores are very common once in a lifetime, or multiple times in a life one may get cold sores. How many times you will have cold sores depends on person to person. One may have it once in a lifetime, or one may have it multiple times in a year, or one may not have any at all.
Cold sores are nothing to worry about; they are usually mild but sometimes appear to be complicated in a very rare case. A weak immune system with certain medical conditions is a cause of severe cold sores. You may catch illness as eating and drinking fluids with cold sores is difficult, which is another reason for weak immunity.
How Frequent Are Cold Sores?
There have been studies that show that 50 to 80 percent of U.S. adults suffer from oral herpes. According to the National Institutes of Health, about 90 percent of adults have been exposed to the virus by the age of 50. It’s also necessary to learn how long do cold sores last as they do not appear in a day and go off in a day. It takes time to heal, so before learning how long it takes to heal completely, let’s also read about symptoms and causes too.
What Are The Symptoms of Cold Sore
A cold sore goes through various stages; it appears mainly on the border of your lips, mouth, and cheeks. Sometimes, they are even noticed around fingers. You may get cold sores as late as 20 days after you are infected. They generally appear in the area where the virus has affected, Let’s learn more about the symptoms of cold sores:
- You may feel a tingling sensation and itching around your lips for a few hours or a day before painful, hard blisters appear on the skin around your lips.
- Blisters are the most annoying thing you see on your face, the fluid-filled blisters around your lips; sometimes they even appear around the nose or cheeks or inside the mouth.
- This stage of cold sore throat is very bad as oozing and crusting appear, the small blisters leave shallow open sores that ooze and crust over.
- If you have got a cold for the first time, then you may also have red or swelling gums fall in glands in your neck, fever and body aches, burning, and pain inside your mouth are very common. You may even feel pain when you swallow food.
- Symptoms vary, depending on whether this is your first outbreak or a recurrence. The sores can prolong for many days, and the blisters may take 2 to 3 weeks to heal completely.
What Are The Causes of Cold Sore
The main cause of cold sores is herpes simplex virus (HSV); once you are infected with this virus, it causes cold sores; the outbreaks get triggered more when exposed to hot sun, cold winds, an illness related to cold, weak immune system, fatigue, stress or some dental work.
When you get infected with HSV-1, you may not even know about it; the exposure is mild. Moreover, the virus is common and highly contagious. It spreads through saliva or being in close contact with the person, sharing things such as utensils, towels, spoons, glasses, and lip balm with someone who has a cold sore.
How Long Do Cold Sores Last
Every illness has a time period that may take three days, five days, ten days, fifteen days, or a month, depending on the severity. Cold sores heal on their own, but it also has a time duration. It takes three to five days to heal completely, but it can come back if not treated. Do not be a doctor on your own. Get a medical consultation from a medical service provider.
HSV may stay in your body neutrally for years and cause no symptoms, although the virus may reactivate and cause cold sores.
Between the ages of 5 and 10, cold sores appear frequently and take approximately one to two weeks to heal. Many people contract HSV as children and carry the virus throughout their lives.
How Can You Treat Cold Sores?
Cold sores are fluid-filled pockets around your mouth; cold sores prolong longer than you expect them to go off, it usually go away in about 2 weeks. There are no perfect medications that may help you to get rid of them; there are a few ways you must try out to get rid of cold sores. It also helps in reducing the discomfort.
1. Applying cold compress
It will provide you relief from redness, swelling, pain, and irritation. To minimize the effect, take a bowl filled with cold water, soak a clean towel with cold water, and place it over the sores for 5 to 10 minutes follow this practice two to three times in one round use clean water and a towel each time to avoid infection.
2. Petroleum jelly
You can apply petroleum jelly over the dried-up cold sores to treat the pain you feel around your mouth when you feel pain from the dried cold sores.
Treating cold sores immediately reduces the risk of spreading it to others
3. Avoid hot foods and drinks
Avoid consuming hot foods and drinks as they may cause pain or increase swelling. Choosing the right food that is cold will help you to eat comfortably, and you will be filled without any annoyance.
You can try some over-the-counter medications sometimes, but it would be best if you consult your doctor first before consuming any medicines.
4. Cover your lips
While moving out in the sun, remember to cover your lips with lip balm for sunblock. If your lips become dry and scabby, apply a moisturizing cream.
How Can You Prevent Cold Sores
Any illness in your boy takes away your relaxation as you cannot stop bothering yourself from it that’s why it’s necessary to prevent the illness, cold sores can be prevented by following taking proper measures if you are one suffers a lot from cold sores or get them often then you must definitely learn how to prevent cold sores, read below-listed tips to prevent this contagious virus.
- It’s your foremost responsibility to inform your friends and family when you suffer from cold sores to prevent its outbreak.
- Do not share your belongings with anyone, especially your utensils, clothes, handkerchiefs, towels, and bedding.
- Avoid giving your gadgets to anyone until you recover from the cold sores, as there can be strains of virus on them.
- Do not repeat used clothes, towels, and bedding always use washed ones only
- Avoid close contact with people especially hugging, kissing cheeks, shaking hands, etc.
- Avoid sensual contact with your partner, especially mouth-to-mouth kissing, until the cold sores heal completely.
- The most important rule is to wash your hands frequently, especially after touching a cold sore.
When suffering from a cold sore, do not touch your eyes, as once the HSV-1 gets into the eyes, it can cause a lot of harm
How Long Do Cold Sores Last in Different Stages
Cold sores are small, fluid-filled, painful blisters that occur around the mouth due to the herpes simplex virus (HSV). It’s a mild illness but goes through several stages while getting healed. Let’s read further to find out how long do cold sores last.
- Stage 1: it’s the primary stage of a cold sore where it has just begun its formation, including itching, burning, or sensations around the lips. You may also find swelling appearing around the affected area. The first stage of cold sore may last for 1 to 2 days.
- Stage 2: It’s the most uncomfortable stage of cold sores as they are now fluid-filled blisters on the face, most often on one side of the lips. This painful, annoying stage of cold sores may last for 1 to 2 days.
- Stage 3: reaching this stage, it’s getting healed. This healing stage lasts for up to three days. As the blister bursts, you may feel intense pain, and remember you have to be careful at this stage as cold sore remains very contagious at this point.
- Stage 4: The cold sore begins to dry up, and a bit of annoyance remains; otherwise, it’s partially healed; you may notice a yellow or brown crust with some bleeding. This stage of cold sore lasts for two to three days.
- Stage 5: this is the final stage of how long do cold sores last; the scabbing falls off, and it heals properly.
The cold sore virus remains in your system throughout your lifetime; although how long do cold sores last varies from person to person, it resides in the body at a contagious stage for about 9 to 12 days.
There are no effective proper treatments for cold sores, but some symptoms can be reduced with medications; it also reduces the frequent appearance and speeds up the healing process. It’s wise to start treatment as soon as the first symptoms appear; do not wait for the condition to worsen.
It’s fine to choose some natural options that help in reducing the burning sensation and inflammation; natural application soothes and calms down the affected part. Apply ice, aloe vera gel, or tea tree oil to the affected area; consume vitamin C and zinc supplements; avoid consuming unhealthy junk food and spicy or acidic foods. However, these remedies have not proven effective and may not work for everyone.
When To Seek Medical Help
Cold sores clear up on their own it does not require any treatment but if you have any of the below listed reasons, then you must seek medical help from your medical service provider
- If you have a weak immune system.
- If your cold sores are not getting healed within two weeks.
- If your symptoms are extremely severe.
- If cold sores are not getting away, return back.
- You have painful eyes
Can Cold Sores Be Prevented?
If you have any infection or disease, try to prevent its spread; let’s read here to know how you can prevent cold sores. If you have never had a cold sore, it is most contagious when it ruptures, and it remains contagious until it is healed. Avoid contact with someone who has an active cold sore, especially skin-to-skin. If you suffer from a cold sore, then you must try to stop its occurrence again and again over and over; just assess the factors that contribute to outbreaks so that you can avoid the reasons for recurrence. Some of the reasons are mentioned below:
- hormonal changes during pregnancy or reaching menopause
- Outbreaks happen due to high fever, viral infection or illness
- extreme exposure to sunlight, wind, or cold
- Always being stressed
- Exhausted and tired mentally and physically
- When your immune system changes
Try out the mentioned naturals tips to get some relief from cold sores
1. Apply Aloe vera Gel
It has very soothing effects on sores as aloe vera has anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties. You can scrape off the gel from the plant, or you can purchase it from the market. Apply aloe vera gel over cold sores twice or thrice a day. You will notice a soothing effect and speed up healing.
2. Use ice cubes or an ice pack
Treating a sore with ice won’t let them go immediately, nor will it reduce the duration of a cold sore outbreak, but its soothing cool effect eases the discomfort and inflammation. You can apply a cold pack directly to the sores for temporary relief. To avoid the risk of irritation or burning your skin, limit your cold pack time to 15 minutes at a time.
3. You Need a Stress Reduction
Stress can be the cause of the outbreak of the herpes virus, so it’s necessary that you manage your stress and reduce it with effective exercises. Follow yoga practice regularly to allow yourself some space, and add 10 to 30 minutes of anti-stress techniques into your daily routine. No one can help you unless you try out first.
How long do cold sores last depends on how careful you are for yourself when you take good care of your health by eating well, sleeping well, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. You are blessing your body, and no illness could sustain a healthy body. Always remember your body whispers. There is a problem before it screams about it, so understand the signs: eat healthy, stay healthy, and live healthy.
