Welcome to the Cold Sores Guide

Cold sores is a disorder or an illness characterised by blisters full of fluid that usually appear on red swollen skin or even in mucous membranes which are usually painful and tender. Although the blisters heal without leaving a scar on the spot where it occurred there is a tendency that it will recur on the same spots or nearby again. Cold sores are caused by herpes simples virus or HSV.

There are actually two kinds of HSV; the HSV-1 which is very common and these are the causes of cold sores which is scientifically referred to as oral herpes. And the other type is the HSV-2 which is more severe than the other since this is the cause of genital herpes. Both types can cause infection to the skin and mucous membranes.

Researchers said that 75 percent of the population have natural antibodies against HSV-1 and 25 percent are for HSV-2. People with weak antibodies can usually acquire such illness but even those who have active antibodies can experience it from time to time. So it is always advisable to keep those antibodies active by eating food full of nutrients and vitamins. Vitamin C plays a great role in this kind of illness because it boosts the effectivity of body defences and will help those wounds heal faster.

You can get these kind of viruses through close skin contact. Like kissing and sexual intercourse. HSV will invade the cells of the outer layer of the skin called epidermis that will cause the production of blisters full of fluid. These viruses will trace and travel from epidermis to the roots of nerves but it becomes inactive once it reaches there. However, when the body’s immune system becomes weak, HSV have the tendency to be active which will cause the recurrence of the blisters. These recurrences can sometimes infect the mouth and throats especially that of the children which will be accompanied by fever and other body pains. The outbreak of this virus is very unpleasant since it will cause tingling sensation in the skin and later on the fluid-filled blisters will appear and are very painful.