These two ailments are commonly confused. Both canker sores and cold sores occur near the same location, share many of the same triggers such as stress, facial trauma, and hormonal changes and can be very painful. But, it is important to distinguish between the two conditions to ensure that you get the best treatment available.
Canker sores are white ovals inside the mouth. Their medical term is an aphthous ulcer or an ulcerated canker. Canker sores are the less serious of the two and, while they can be very painful, are usually nothing to worry about.
Cold sores are like pimples outside the mouth. Their medical term is herpes labialis or oral herpes. Cold sores are more serious and require complex treatment. They are highly contagious. They are generally not serious, but can be life-threatening for anyone with a decreased immune system thanks to medications or other disorders, such as AIDS.
Canker sores look like small, oval shaped white or gray area surrounded by a red halo. They’re about 2-4 mm in size.You get canker sores inside the mouth. The common areas are: cheeks, tongue, inner lips. They are not contagious.
There’s no single cause of canker sores, and no one knows why some people get them more often than others, but they can usually be traced back to one or several of these things: food allergies, nutrition deficiency, stress, hormonal changes, something sharp and so on.
The most important thing you can do for a canker sore: find out what the root cause is.Most of the time, you just wait it out (canker sores take about two weeks to go away on their own).To speed up the healing process, rinsing with a super saturated salt rinse with either himalayan or dead sea salt is very good.
Cold sores start out as tiny fluid-filled blisters which eventually break open and then crust over. Before the blisters appear, they may start out as itching, burning or tingling sensation around the lips.
Cold sores are mainly found on our outside of lips and outside of mouth, and they tend to recur at the same spot every time.
Cold sores are caused by a virus. The virus spreads when people share utensils and cups, kissing, and even shaking hands with someone who has touched their oozing blister.
Cold sores will heal by themselves in about 2-3 weeks. These are my tips for what to do during the healing process and how to get out of pain. One of the solutions is medication - the creams attack the cold sore and its site, but you can attack the viral infection systemically by taking a pill — but there are side effects, so try the cream first. Zovirax is the most popular.
Also, you should avoid makeup: Covering up cold sores with makeup can slow down the healing process. If you have to cover up a cold sore for work, remove the makeup as soon as you get home, ideally with warm water and gauze instead of makeup remover, which contains alcohol and other solvents and will irritate the cold sore.
Both of these conditions are not serious , but it’s very important to get to know the details so you can distinguish between the two and seek help accordingly.
