I'm sorry that this is not really a mom question, other than that it's about a mom :). I've been prone to canker sores every since I was a little girl. When I was a teen I started getting them in my throat, on my tonsils, which has continued today, especially in times of stress or if I'm fighting off a bug. I've been tested for things like herpes (especially in college when that's what they assume :)) but they are just plain old canker sores, but in my throat. I've got a terrible one right now, and as silly as it seems for something so "little," it is really dragging me down because of the constant pain when eating, talking, etc. So mamas, what do you do for canker sores, both for pain relief and for making them go away? I've tried a lot of things over the years. Right now I've just been gargling with salt water and sometimes hydrogen peroxide, but this one just keeps getting worse! I would be so grateful for any suggestions!
Thank you all so much for your helpful responses! I'm off to the drug store to buy maalox and benadryl to gargle with, and I'm going to try taking some Lysine and B12 for good measure! :) Also think it's time to call my dr to talk about this again...
Since you've seen doctors for this I assume they've ruled out that they are signs of other conditions - celiac disease, Behcet's syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, and squamous cell carcinoma.
You can try a few things:
German Chamomile
Ladys Mantle
vitamin B12
Deglycyrrhizinated licorice (DGL)
http://altmedicine.about.com/cs/treatments/a/Canker.htm
http://www.medicinenet.com/canker_sores/article.htm
When I worked in a dental office, my boss would write a prescription for a rinse/gargle that really helped people. It was 1/3 liquid Benadryl, 1/3 Maalox or Pepto Bismal and 1/3 topical anesthetic. Swish or gargle with the concoction prior to eating. This will need to be compounded, but I think that most pharmacies can mix this one, and it wouldn't have to be a compounding pharmacy.
My husband gets canker sores from Crest toothpaste. Once he switched toothpaste, he hasn't had another one. I always keep liquid Benadryl and Pepto on hand and just mix equal parts and that works pretty well. The only thing the topical anesthetic does is numb the area. (It won't hurt to swallow this either and it will get it in your throat where you need it)
Years ago my mother used to get these terribly. Her old time country doctor used to give her a shot of B12 and it always cleared them up. Llysine is also supposed to help. Hope that some of these remedies work for you. I can't imagine how miserable you are. Be sure to avoid anything acidic until they are healed.
Merry Christmas.
Canker sores ARE herpes; they are the Herpes-Simplex 1 virus. They belong with the same family as canker sores. My husband and I have had lots and lots and lots and lots... well, just lots and lots of issues with canker sores/HSV-1 and, after asking doctors in the allopathic community and in the alternative care community, the consensus that finally came back--from all the doctors--is that, canker sores are herpes. Sorry. That's a fact.
My husband gets them really, really bad in his mouth. We discovered that he is allergic to sodium lauryl sulfate, the ingredient that makes toothpaste foam. Once he quit using commercial/over-the-counter brands that had that and started using organic toothpaste/toothpaste without sodium lauryl sulfate, the number of canker sores he'd get dramatically dropped. Some toothpaste ideas (Whole Foods, Co-op stores, alternative health pharmacies) include: Weleda brand (there's 3 different flavors) and Neem Toothpaste (cinnamon is my fav! It can be found at Whole Foods). I love the Neem Toothpaste because it still foams; they use a coconut byproduct.
I don't really have an answer as to what to put on them inside the mouth.
BUT, I do have something you can do to prevent them. Buy a supplement called L-Lysine, 1,000 mg, from a company called Solaray. I have found that this supplement is THE BEST thing I have ever found to help control/prevent them. I take 3,000 mg/day, my husband takes 2,000 mg/day. The severity and the rate of infection we both have has dropped dramatically. But look for and buy only the SOLARAY brand; I haven't found any other brand that works as well as the Solaray one.
And yes, canker sores can be indicative that you could be 1) nutritionally deficient (that's me!), 2) could have an immune-compromised system (that's me!), 3) you could have food allergies/intolerances (that's me!), 4) could have Celiac disease, 4) could have gluten intolerance (has the same 300 signs and symptoms as Celiac disease, but it's not an auto immune disease like Celiac disease is.) (That's me!), or 5) you could have an overload of heavy metal toxins in your system, therefore messing up your immune system and your nutrients (that's me!).
**A caution about Tincture of Merthiolate, which one poster recommended. Tincture of Merthiolate (if one can even get this yet) contains Mercury. Mercury is a Heavy Metal/Toxin and shouldn't be taken. By anyone. Period.
We love a supplement called lysine.
My grandmother told me years ago that one of her family members got a lot of canker sores when he was a child. When he was a child and went for the umteenth time to he pharmacy to get a prescription to cure them his pharmisist asked him if he ate a lot of pickles; he said yes he did. The pharmisist told him to stop eating pickles and the canker sores would go away. I found through personal experience that anything pickled could cause canker sores.
I can relate- I have a history of some pretty horrendous canker sores too- never in my throat though- that sounds awful :(
I got a script from my dentist for Triamcinolone Acetonide Dental Paste USP, 0.1% It's been like a miracle cure for me, and has saved me from weeks of agony. This isn't something that you would be able to use for the one in your throat, though. I would call your doctor and see what he/she can prescribe for that. Maybe something else exists that you can gargle with or swallow.
If you keep getting canker sores, you may have some sort of nutritional deficiency (I'm anemic). You may want to consider asking your doctor if there are some tests you can have done to determine why you keep getting them.
Here is some information you might find helpful:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/canker-sore/DS00354/DSEC...
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/canker_sores/article_em.htm
http://www.quantumhealth.com/news/canker_sores.html
http://www.howtogetridofstuff.com/health/how-to-get-rid-o...
Hope you feel better soon!!!!!! =o)
I am a chiropractor and I second L-Lysine....
My family has used powdered alum for 4 generations. From the grocery store spice section, if you can't find it in powdered form just use spoons to grind it down. Put a small pinch on the canker sore for 30 seconds. It will burn slightly but usually the sore will go away in the next day.
I have friends who have beaten this by boosting their immune systems overall - nutritional supplementation was recommended by the American Medical Association 10 years ago because our food just doesn't contain the nutrients anymore. So we are sicker and sicker. It sounds like you sense this since you notice your canker sores are worse when you're already coming down with something. And stress, as you've noted, is a huge problem because it increases cortisol and inflammation - your immune system responds by shutting down.
This process takes about 20 minutes of education so if you want to PM me, feel free. But there is hope for you. It's not an overnight fix but will provide a (likely) permanent solution.
I may be waaay off base here so if anyone knows differently please feel free to correct me... are these the kind of sores that respond to an application of equal parts liquid Benadryl and a liquid antacid like Maalox?
Feel better soon!
Avoid acidic foods, and suck on Tums or antacid for some relief, because the acids in your mouth can irritate it and make it worse. But the best advice I can give you is take Lysine! I used to get horrible canker sores as a teen, and my dentist recommended Lysine. I have not had chronic problems since (as an added bonus, taking Lysine daily can also build your immunity towards common viruses, esp. colds). You can get it at any store, but look for capsules that are easier to absorb. I like the ones at www.puritanspride.com because they are easy to swallow and cheap, and do the job well.
Yogurt lots and lots of yogurt, and when I do get one which I have only had one in several years (I forgot to buy yogurt for a while) I start putting on Arbonne's Rejuvenating Cream, it shortens the time and it also starts healing it right away. I couldn't believe how it stopped the canker sore in it's tracks. I also take tylenol as soon as I feel that slight headache and upset stomach and that itch on my mouth. I haven't had them in my throat you poor thing that has to be painful. I agree with one of the other Mom's a good Vitamin will also help. ( ran out of mine for a short time) Good luck I hope you find something that helps you.
I'm a Dental Hygienist, and at our office we have a product called Debacterol. Of course you can't use it for the ones you have in the throat, but it works great!!! Ask your dentist if they have this.
