Canker sores

[KerriMc]

Does anyone else get cankers? They REALLY hurt!!! I had a huge one on the top gum all last week and it the pain is just going away, although it is still there. Then wham, I get two right together on the lower inside of my lip on the bottom. They are really hurting me right now!!! How can I get rid of them? Is there anything you can put on cankers to stop the pain? Why do you get them? Nothing really changes in my diet I don't think. I normally eat a lot of fruits, so that isn't any different right now.

Any ideas??? I just want them to go away!!

Kerri

 

[daisyduck123]

I feel your pain. I get them too & have unfortunately passed the trait on down to my DS8. He's got one right now...a doozy. Ocassionally, I use Tincture of Benzoin. It's a topical liquid that really numbs it for a while. It stings at first, but then really numbs it so that I can't feel it.

I also have never been able to find a correlation with break outs & diet, stress, etc.

 

[golfgal]

I was always told that if you got a lot of canker sores to eat more green, leafy veges because you were lacking in vitamin A (I think). DS14 gets quite a few of them. Our dentist prescribed at topical anaesthetic for them, something they made at the pharmacy, and that really helped. Gargling with salt water is supposed to help too but that HURTS!

 

[HappyDznyCamper]

There is an otc med called Abreva that is supposed to help them heal faster, but if I remember correctly it is about $12.00 for a very small tube.

 

[mommy*RN]

In the peds office where I work we recommend a mixture of Benadryl and Maalox (1 part Benadryl to 3 parts Maalox). It's a swish and spit type solution. It apparently numbs the painful area. Might be worth a try...especially since you may already have these items around the house. I don't recommend it for kids though unless you check with your ped first...

 

[golfgal]

There is an otc med called Abreva that is supposed to help them heal faster, but if I remember correctly it is about $12.00 for a very small tube.

This is for cold sores (herpes) not canker sores.

 

[buzzlady]

Try a product by Oral-B called Amosan. It is over the counter but you might have to ask at the pharmacy for it.
It is individual packets. You mix 1 packet with a tiny bit of warm/hot water and swish it around in your mouth.

 

[Linda/MA]

I used to get them ALL the time, but haven't had any in years. I was always told it was some sort of virus in my body. Guess it's gone! I used to buy a product called Kanka for them. It came in a small bottle and hurt like heck, but helped numb the pain for a while. Nothing will make them go away. One time my whole mouth was covered with them and I ended up going to the ER because it was so painful. They gave me something to numb them (can't think of the name but it was a pink liquid). Soon after that, I was diagnosed with mono.

 

[daisyduck123]

I was always told that if you got a lot of canker sores to eat more green, leafy veges because you were lacking in vitamin A (I think).

That couldn't be the reason in my case. I eat at least 1 salad every day & I go thru a bag of those mini carrots each week. Maybe I'm overdosing on Vitamin A!!

 

[aprilgail2]

My daughter gets them on her gums and the dentist lasers it and the day after she says they don't hurt anymore. Its a small charge, about 25.00 but well worth it.

 

[snowwite]

We use Orabase(over the counter) paste at night and it is usually gone in 1-2 days.

 

[Christine]

I've been getting them all my life.

One thing that REALLY brings them out for me is eating too many homegrown tomatoes. The ones from the grocery store, along with the grape tomatoes, do not bother me one bit. I guess the homegrown ones have a lot more acid.

I've also switched to Rembrandt's Canker Sore Relief toothpaste. It does not contain sodium lauryl sulfate which, in some people, can cause an increase in canker sores. I have noticed quite a reduction in my canker sores by strictly using this toothpaste.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

My 15yo used to get them all the time (really all the time), but I read a thread about them here on the CB and we tried a couple of suggestions and now he rarely gets them. He takes a daily L-lysine tablet and uses Arm & Hammer Brilliant Sparkle toothpaste. If he feels one coming on he brushes his teeth an extra time and takes an extra L-lysine.

I also take the L-lysine for cold sores. I used to get at least one a month and I don't think I've gotten any in the 5 months since starting the daily L-lysine.

 

[Simba's Mom]

In the peds office where I work we recommend a mixture of Benadryl and Maalox (1 part Benadryl to 3 parts Maalox). It's a swish and spit type solution. It apparently numbs the painful area. Might be worth a try...especially since you may already have these items around the house. I don't recommend it for kids though unless you check with your ped first...

Yup, that's the same cure recommended for DS when he was young. The only difference is that he had to swish it in his mouth for 30 seconds before spitting. And it worked!

 

[Kendra17]

I remember learning this, but I can't guarantee it's accurate, that canker sores were cold sores INSIDE your mouth. It's the same virus. If it IS the same virus, you may want to get an as-needed prescription for valtrex. You would take it only when you feel the canker sore for 5 days, I think. It should start to work almost immediately.

I'm not sure if kids are supposed to take it or not, though.

I think, also, what you might want to do is find a medication that stays on soft tissue/membrane. I'm not sure that Abreva will, even if it's a great medication. You really just want to protect the area from food and bacteria. There are some liquid medications (ask the pharmacist) that should be able to adhere to the tissue inside your mouth.

Good Luck.

 

[Darian]

I've had a good deal of my immune system surgically removed due to cancer. Following that operation, I now get canker and cold sores frequently. My doc gave me Famvir 250mg tabs to take as soon as I feel either one come on and it stops them dead in their tracks. Its just amazing. The doc told me they are caused by a strain of herpes virus. Which I don't seem to have much of a defense against anymore.

But boy, as soon as I feel a canker or cold sore start to form, I pop one of those babies then take one in the morning and one at night till they are completely healed - usually 2 days. It stops the pain and the whole deal. BTW, the sooner you notice the early symptoms and respond by taking the pill the better off you are.

There is another drug for use when you get these sores on your eyeballs. Ugh. Never had that though.

 

[KerriMc]

Hello again I went to the pharmacy and ended up picking up Kanka by Blistex. It doesn't taste the greatest, but it has numbed the WHOLE area ... it drips a bit, so of course my whole inside of my lip now feels like I've been to the dentist Anyways ... glad to see I'm not the only one here. I did see some of those other products on the shelf, but couldn't believe how expensive they were! The Kanka was five bucks, but most others were b/w $6 and $12!! At least there has been some relief with the Kanka!!

Kerri

 

[Becky2005]

OUCH! I hate those things. I get them when stressed out (used to get them a lot more when I was younger too but not so much anymore). However, the best solution I have found is using Listerine...burns like the dickens though but heals it faster than waiting the 7 days for it to go away (at least mine take about 7 days if I do nothing). I put some on a q-tip and dab it directly on the sore.

 

[momrek06]

My Mom (today) is 78yo. She is a retired Nurse. Worked her whole life in the hospital. When I was little (many, many years ago) she used to tell all us kids (5), that canker sores are a result of a "lack of elimination"...I am trying to be politically correct on the DIS here...but anyway, yes, Mom would say canker sores are directly related to not moving your bowels. If you are bound up, suffering with any bouts of constipation canker sores may result.

Now I never knew if that was correct. Has anyone ever heard of that scenario? And I want to DITTO anyone suggesting to buy KANKA. That stuff may sting like heck when you first put a drop on but it does work great.

 

[Beth76]

I didn't read this whole thread, but several people on the DIS have recommended Gly-Oxide. It's OTC and it works great with my cankers. I put it on as soon as I feel one developing and it goes away in about a day.