Give cold sores the cold shoulder

Q: I keep getting cold sores on my upper lip. The blisters are ugly and painful. My dermatologist says it looks like it's a viral infection like herpes and she gave me a prescription for an antiviral drug but I was wondering if there are any natural things I can try first?

Dr. Wright: Herpes outbreaks often occur as a result of too much arginine in the body and not enough lysine to balance it out. Cutting back on dietary sources of arginine like chocolate, nuts, seeds, and beans can cut down on recurrences. Another way of doing the same job is to supplement extra lysine.

Other nutrients, such as selenium, low-dose lithium, vitamin C, and flavonoids, can also inhibit the herpes virus. I usually recommend all of these together with lysine in formulas called HPX and HPX2 by BioTech Pharmacal. And many people have told me that ointment containing glycyrrhetinic acid from licorice helps relieve pain from herpes sores and makes them go away more rapidly.

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