Canker Sores - Any remedies that work?

[themarquis]

No, I do not take any vitamins but I do have some Centrum here so I can start taking those.

I have never heard of a laser treatment - do most dental offices have this?



I have been anemic in the past but haven't had my levels checked in over a year. I didn't realize there was a correlation.
.

Yes -- you should get your blood checked to make sure! Iron deficiency and also I think B vitamin deficiencies (both types of anemia) are both big culprits for canker sores. If you don't go to the doctor, start a vitamin, but make sure it is one with iron and b vitamins.

I used to be so miserable from them ... sometimes they were so bad that it was hard to eat or sleep, and a lot of times, I'd get swollen glands in my neck and feel a bit sick at the same time -- if they're bad enough, your body responds like there is an infection .

This thread reminded me that I only get one every few months now, and when I do, they are very tiny and not very painful! So go get checked out!

 

[momrek06]

KANKA
Professional Strength Mouth Pain Liquid with Convenient Applicator
Oral Anesthetic/Oral Mucosal Protectant
Maximum Pain Relief
Forms Protective Coating
For Sores Inside the Mouth - Canker Sores, Denture Abrasions, Irritation from Braces
American Dental Association Accepted
Indications
For temporary relief of pain due to canker sores, minor irritation of the mouth and gum caused by dentures or orthodontic appliances, or minor injury of the mouth or gums.
Protects against further irritation.
Forms a whitish protective coating over a wound.


Kelley, I am so sorry and I know you are under an enormous amount of stress right now. I buy this for my DS who has a very stressful job and he seems to get canker sores from time to time and KANKA seems to work great. Any drugstore carries it, CVS, Wal-Greens etc. It is about $6.00 a bottle.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I was also told about a L-Lysine lip balm sold at the Whole foods Market. I use this every day for cold sores.

Thanks, I'll have to try that.

 

[golfgal]

Yes -- you should get your blood checked to make sure! Iron deficiency and also I think B vitamin deficiencies (both types of anemia) are both big culprits for canker sores. If you don't go to the doctor, start a vitamin, but make sure it is one with iron and b vitamins.

I used to be so miserable from them ... sometimes they were so bad that it was hard to eat or sleep, and a lot of times, I'd get swollen glands in my neck and feel a bit sick at the same time -- if they're bad enough, your body responds like there is an infection .

This thread reminded me that I only get one every few months now, and when I do, they are very tiny and not very painful! So go get checked out!

That makes sense-my Grandma always told me that canker sores were because you were not eating enough green, leafy veges so if I get them I make sure to have some salad or something for a few days and it helps. The iron and B deficiencies would explain why this helps. I was and am a good vege eater so it wasn't a way to get me to eat more, just something to help.

 

[LukenDC]

I was plagued with canker sores from age four to age 23. I used to get multiple sores at one time and spent a good amount of my childhood in oral pain (I've always wondered what Sigmund Freud would have thought of that??). Anyway, I read a British study that suggested that vitamin deficiency is to blame. I started taking a multi-vitamin and I have essentially been cured. Years will go by without a single canker sore and when I do get a sore, it does not fully develop. If I run out of vitamins and do not readily replace them, the sores return.

I like Orabase paste. It it effective and does not cause pain when applied.

 

[SandrA9810]

Wow, I didn't realize so many people got them.
I can go a while without them, then bam like 5 show up in my mouth. Usually on my lower lip/gum line isn't so bad. It's the ones on the sides of my tounge and cheeks that hurt the most because I have a tendency to bite them by accident.
I've always just survived through them till they go away sometimes it seems like weeks and others are days.

 

[phamton]

You can cauterize them yourself if you can't or don't want to go to the dentist. You go to the Walgreens or any pharmacy and buy a styptic pencil. They are usually by the razors and shaving stuff. It looks like chalk but contains alum. It is used to stop bleeding by shrinking and cauterizing the blood vessels. You hold it on the canker sore. It will burn a little. Make sure you get the outer edges of the canker sore. The pain will stop almost immediately. Do this a few times a day or whenever it hurts. Rinse your mouth out with water after doing this as it does make your mouth feel puckered up.

 

[BuffettFan]

My son suffers terribly from canker sores.

Our pediatrician said to make a mix of one tablespoon of Mylanta & 1 tablespoon of Benedryl, and swab it on the sores. When he was little, that was the only wway we could get him to eat!

We've used that for a long time, and it works!!!

 

[momrek06]

Just came back to re-read this thread. So much great advice.

Are you taking vitamins?

I noticed when my DS started taking just a simple multi-vitamin he was not getting the canker sores as often. So Kel, you have to get yourself a women's multi-vitamin.

brushing with the Arm & Hammer toothpaste and taking a daily l-lysine tablet.

Tig, on the tablets, what is the dosage; like how many milligrams?

As agonizing as it sounds, scrub the hell out of it with a toothbrush. Make it bleed, then dip a cotton ball in Listerine and hold it on the sore until you can't stand it anymore.

Ok now this sounds absolutely ABUSIVE!!!

I agree with the L-Lysine tablet. L-Lysine lip balm sold at the Whole foods Market.

I love Whole Foods....I will be heading over there sooner than later!!!

 

[asta]

My mother swears by Buttermilk.

 

[Boots]

I too used to have these all the time. A pharamist once told me to drink a glass of Nutrish, Nuture, or whatever your brand equivalent is and it would help to neutralize the acidity in your mouth and stomach . This milk is the kind that has acidophilus and bifidum added. Helps a whole bunch. Also when you do get them yogurt helps a lot too.

 

[chrismiss56]

My dentist had me switch to Pro Enamel toothpaste which is missing some chemical that all other toothpastes have. Well after going through life getting them every month (usually multiples) I now get one a year if that.....

PRO ENAMEL!!!!

Have a Magical Disney Day

 

[DisneyOma]

I agree with the L-Lysine tablet. One of the girls at my doctors office told me about this. I only take it now when I feel one coming on. I then take 3 and again the next day. I was also told about a L-Lysine lip balm sold at the Whole foods Market. I use this every day for cold sores. Dson also gets the stress ulcers and the dentist told me to use peroxidle mouth rinse. It works great and doesn't cause any pain. It can be used after each time you brush your teeth as a preventive. It is expensive so if you only want to use it once a day brush your teeth before going to bed and then rinse with the peroxidle. We were unable to use zilactin or similar as it make the stress ulcers worse. Susan

Were any of these girls nurses?

 

[LuvOrlando]

-

 

[kymom99]

I get them when I eat too many tomatoes during garden season. Time is the only thing that helps me.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Since the OP posted their plight 13 years ago, I'm hoping the situation has been remedied.

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

I get them when I eat too many tomatoes during garden season. Time is the only thing that helps me.

Yes this is why I do not eat tomatoes. (tomato products are fine but actual tomatoes are a no go for me)

 

[VanRSA]

So I registered on here only to share some information that hopefully is helpful to anyone who has experienced canker sores the way I have. Straight to the point, the ONLY thing that I have experienced to be a 100% complete and (more importantly) instant fix of an existing and very painful canker sore is Debacterol.
It is a topical treatment and it chemically cauterizes the sore into oblivion in about 3 seconds. Three seconds of pain which is no worse than accidentally hitting that sore with your toothbrush while brushing your teeth and certainly less painful than "scrubbing the hell out of it with your toothbrush until it bleeds and then putting lysterine on it until you can't take it anymore" - as someone else on here posted.
I should point out a caveat though, this is not an over-the-counter medication and you can't purchase it online without having a doctor's licence. Your dentist can purchase it for you and will probably insist on applying it themselves. So it'll cost you a quick dentist visit. Which in my opinion is absolutely worth it because from a personal perspective, losing my appetite and sexdrive for 5 weeks at a time and making my wife and me miserable is nowhere close to the cost of one dentist visit. And yes 5-6 weeks at a time is what I've often had with canker sores the size of a large pea. Sometimes 2 would merge into one big one. They're especially cruel when they sit on a nerve on the inside of my lower lip.
I have tried L-Lysine and baking soda and salt and scrubbing and every home made remedy out there and nothing seemed to worked. I even bought that Luminance REd lazer for over $400. Seemed like that might have made them less frequent. At the end of the day one can try different things to mitigate outbreaks but when one or more does break out, it's good to know there is something that can effectively stop it dead in its tracks.

I hope someone finds this useful!

 

[VanRSA]

I have a mouth full of canker sores right now (mine are triggered by stress) that are just killing me.

I have tried Zilactin, Orabase, Campho Phenique, Orajel Canker Sore discs and still can't get any real relief. I even have one on the tip of my tongue that is very painful.

Anyone else get these? Any cures that seem to actually work for more than a few seconds of numbing the pain?

So I registered on here only to share some information that hopefully is helpful to anyone who has experienced canker sores the way I have. Straight to the point, the ONLY thing that I have experienced to be a 100% complete and (more importantly) instant fix of an existing and very painful canker sore is Debacterol.
It is a topical treatment and it chemically cauterizes the sore into oblivion in about 3 seconds. Three seconds of pain which is no worse than accidentally hitting that sore with your toothbrush while brushing your teeth and certainly less painful than "scrubbing the hell out of it with your toothbrush until it bleeds and then putting lysterine on it until you can't take it anymore" - as someone else on here posted.
I should point out a caveat though, this is not an over-the-counter medication and you can't purchase it online without having a doctor's licence. Your dentist can purchase it for you and will probably insist on applying it themselves. So it'll cost you a quick dentist visit. Which in my opinion is absolutely worth it because from a personal perspective, losing my appetite and sexdrive for 5 weeks at a time and making my wife and me miserable is nowhere close to the cost of one dentist visit. And yes 5-6 weeks at a time is what I've often had with canker sores the size of a large pea. Sometimes 2 would merge into one big one. They're especially cruel when they sit on a nerve on the inside of my lower lip.
I have tried L-Lysine and baking soda and salt and scrubbing and every home made remedy out there and nothing seemed to worked. I even bought that Luminance REd lazer for over $400. Seemed like that might have made them less frequent. At the end of the day one can try different things to mitigate outbreaks but when one or more does break out, it's good to know there is something that can effectively stop it dead in its tracks.

I hope someone finds this useful!

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Old thread!

I have always used Alum (powdered or crystalized). It is used for pickling things so you can just buy it in the spice section. A tiny dab on the canker - let it sit a few seconds to a minute - rinse out (tastes icky/puckery). Cures little ones practically instantly. Big canker sores need a second application a few hours later, can keep going as necessary but they are usually pretty well closed up after 2 rounds of alum. It's amazing, dirt cheap, and the little container you get will last for many years (like, decades...).