Guest Posted January 8, 2007 Share Posted January 8, 2007 I'm in my late 30's and have never gotten cold sores before. Now all of a sudden over the past 2-3 months I have been getting them. The weather is not that cold here, nor did I seem stressed. I have tried the carmex which works pretty good. I like Burts Bee's lip balm as well. But my question is, if I have never gotten them before why am I all of a sudden getting them now? Link to post Share on other sites
Zaira Posted January 9, 2007 Share Posted January 9, 2007 It's a viral thing. You may have only just picked up the virus, or maybe the virus has only just become active. Use ice. It kills the virus and clears them up pretty quick. Link to post Share on other sites
che_jesse Posted January 9, 2007 Share Posted January 9, 2007 Most people are exposed to HSV-1 before they turn 3, some people have an immunity and some dont, those that dont usually get symptoms around puberty. My guess is that you just picked it up but who knows you might have had it for years it just finally became active. On a side note: My boyfriend gets them, he was terrified to tell me and the only reason that he did is because he got an outbreak. For some reason hes never been to the doctor for them even though hes been getting them since he was 12, well I dragged him to see a doctor that very day and they gave him Valtrex, he says its a miracle drug. When he takes it after the sore breaks the skin it cuts the healing time in half but if he takes it before it ever breaks the skin the sore never even shows up. My advice to you, forget all the over the counter stuff, go see your doc and get on Valtrex. Just go when you feel the tingling that will give you enough time to prevent it. Link to post Share on other sites
magichands Posted January 9, 2007 Share Posted January 9, 2007 My advice to you, forget all the over the counter stuff, go see your doc and get on Valtrex. Just go when you feel the tingling that will give you enough time to prevent it. The antivirals are awesome, but that Valtrex costs over a hundred per course. Well, that's if you're paying "real" money for them. Are you from some "miracle" country, with a generous healthcare system? I thought only newsreaders and performance artists could afford the big guns. I agree that the over-the-counter stuff is next to useless. Good call. (HSV-2, the nastier genital kind, can also live on the lips, but it's much, much less common. Each serotype has its own favourite spot, so to speak.) Link to post Share on other sites
che_jesse Posted January 9, 2007 Share Posted January 9, 2007 Are you from some "miracle" country, with a generous healthcare system? I thought only newsreaders and performance artists could afford the big guns. Its $100 if you have genetal herpies and are treating an outbreak of that, for a cold sore they will give you 2 pills which run $25. The boyfriend and I have insurance so its $15 for him but even without it $25 is worth not getting the cold sore at all. Link to post Share on other sites
magichands Posted January 9, 2007 Share Posted January 9, 2007 Its $100 if you have genetal herpies and are treating an outbreak of that, for a cold sore they will give you 2 pills which run $25. The boyfriend and I have insurance so its $15 for him but even without it $25 is worth not getting the cold sore at all. Thanks for the clarification. Wow, you learn something new every day... well, if you don't take a pill to suppress it, that is. Link to post Share on other sites
ShoeGirl Posted January 10, 2007 Share Posted January 10, 2007 It's a viral thing. You may have only just picked up the virus, or maybe the virus has only just become active. Use ice. It kills the virus and clears them up pretty quick. Ice won't kill it, it just slows the activity of the virus. The only thing that will kill the virus is a prescription anti-viral medication such as Valtrex. Link to post Share on other sites
Porn_Guy Posted January 10, 2007 Share Posted January 10, 2007 The only thing that will kill the virus is a prescription anti-viral medication such as Valtrex. nothing "kills" viruses SG....the meds may supress viruses. Please don't mis-inform. Thanks. Link to post Share on other sites
ShoeGirl Posted January 10, 2007 Share Posted January 10, 2007 Porn_guy: I was trying to edit my post but my internet died... There are medications that can kill some viruses, however not for the herpes viruses yet. What I wanted to add is that medications like valtrex kill the active forms of the virus, however viruses hide inside body cells in an inactive form until something triggers them to be released (such as stress) which then causes outbreaks in the case of herpes. Link to post Share on other sites
Porn_Guy Posted January 10, 2007 Share Posted January 10, 2007 ... There are medications that can kill some viruses, no there aren't....viruses aren't even "alive" in the true sense so how can they be "killed"? Link to post Share on other sites
la_ant Posted February 14, 2007 Share Posted February 14, 2007 There are two types of herpes viruses, HSV-1 and HSV-2. The first one is associated with cold sores while the second one with genital outbreaks. Although HSV-1 has can infect down there too (this is more prevalent in Europe than in the US). There is no cure for herpes, once you have it, it's for life. Most people get infected with HSV-1 at an early age and it is estimated that more than 1/2 of the US population is positive for #1. When you have an outbreak, you shouldn't give oral sex. Also, do not rub your eyes (in the rare event that it spreads to your cornea, you may go blind) and wash your hands all the time (and before and after going to the bathroom). Now for the treatments of HSV-1. Abreva (in the US, OTC) works fairly well. I think it may be called Zovirax in Europe but don't quote me on that. Apply it as soon as you feel that tingling sensation. Also, avoid food with arginine (an amino acid, the building blocks of proteins) such as tomatoes. Also, some stores sell L-lysine (another amino acid) sold for cheap as a food supplement that works very well to shorten the outbreaks. Finally, try to get some rest. Outbreaks happen when we are really tired. Regarding HSV-2, I don't know about treatments. Now, I don't know why outbreaks suddenly. Maybe you had it for years but you are more tired these days, maybe somebody who had it kissed you. Human health is complicated. Don't sweat on it, as I said, more than 50% of the population has HSV-1. Hope this helps. I am not a doctor. Link to post Share on other sites
magichands Posted February 14, 2007 Share Posted February 14, 2007 I am not a doctor. You seem to know a lot. Are you a virus? Link to post Share on other sites
Craig Posted February 14, 2007 Share Posted February 14, 2007 Originally Posted by ShoeGirl ... There are medications that can kill some viruses, no there aren't....viruses aren't even "alive" in the true sense so how can they be "killed"? ...so ShoeGirl can you give some examples of viruses that can be killed by medications? Link to post Share on other sites
Citizen Erased Posted February 14, 2007 Share Posted February 14, 2007 Damn i hate cold sores. I had them frequently from when I was 6 til 15. I haven't had one for about 7 months which is wow to me. I just have about 3 different kinds of anti-cold sore stuff and if the tingle happens they all go on. Works for me lol. Link to post Share on other sites
ShoeGirl Posted February 15, 2007 Share Posted February 15, 2007 ...so ShoeGirl can you give some examples of viruses that can be killed by medications? ok... I don't have a ton of time right now but here is what I found doing a quick search.... Ceragenins (or CSAs) shows potent virucidal activity in in vitro laboratory tests against multiple strains of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), the virus that causes AIDS. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=37218 And here is a blip on a study using nanocoatings and visible light to kill viruses Laboratory testing of the permanent nanocoating developed by researchers at North Carolina State University College of Textiles and Emory University School of Medicine showed the coating kills 99.9 percent of influenza viruses and 99.99 percent of vaccinia viruses that cause rash, fever, head and body aches. http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/index.php?feed=Science&article=UPI-1-20061101-16474500-bc-us-nanocoating.xml Link to post Share on other sites
Porn_Guy Posted February 15, 2007 Share Posted February 15, 2007 Use ice. It kills the virus and clears them up pretty quick. you mean crystal meth? no thanks! I'd rather have the sore Link to post Share on other sites
milvushina Posted February 16, 2007 Share Posted February 16, 2007 You can also take L-Lysine to suppress a cold sore. From any grocery store, it's a supplement. Or if you get them really bad, your dr. can put you on suppressive therapy for a while. I don't remember them being that expensive, that's too bad. Isn't the anti-viral Acyclovir older and cheaper? I have taken that one too and it worked great for me. stupid cold sores, I hate them. Link to post Share on other sites
milvushina Posted February 16, 2007 Share Posted February 16, 2007 you mean crystal meth? no thanks! I'd rather have the sore Judging by what I've seen on the internet crystal meth seems to make cold sores very happy! Link to post Share on other sites
Craig Posted February 18, 2007 Share Posted February 18, 2007 Originally Posted by Craig ...so ShoeGirl can you give some examples of viruses that can be killed by medications? ok... I don't have a ton of time right now but here is what I found doing a quick search.... Sorry for not being clear...what I meant was can you give me an example of a medication that is FDA approved for the purpose of killing a virus in the human body. Link to post Share on other sites
LucreziaBorgia Posted February 18, 2007 Share Posted February 18, 2007 I use Zovirax. It really works wonders on cold sores. Link to post Share on other sites
Trialbyfire Posted February 18, 2007 Share Posted February 18, 2007 For me the best thing to do with cold sores is to prevent the outbreak. I use a thick lip balm with UV protection everyday. I haven't had one for about 10 years. Link to post Share on other sites
ShoeGirl Posted February 19, 2007 Share Posted February 19, 2007 Sorry for not being clear...what I meant was can you give me an example of a medication that is FDA approved for the purpose of killing a virus in the human body. I don't know of any that are FDA approved right now, but I know of a few pharmaceutical companies that are working on such drugs. A friend of mine who graduated from my college not too long ago has been working for one of these companies. He has told me a lot about it, however I am not sure I should be writing about it on the internet because it hasn't been publicly announced yet. The only reason he told me is because they are looking to fill a summer research position and he thought I would be a good candidate and wanted to give me and idea of what projects the company is working on. Once it is publicly announced I will be able to give more specific information, but there is no telling when that will be. Link to post Share on other sites
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