Cold Sores and Fever Blisters have been a blight on the human face for over 2000 years. They have been, and still are, a worldwide epidemic. Historically, the ancient Romans were cursed with them too. In fact, they had such an outbreak of cold sores and fever blisters going on in Rome, the emperor banished kissing in public ceremonies. Today, it is estimated that nine out of every ten men, women and children over seven are infected with the virus that causes these unsightly blisters.

By the time you finish reading this short article, you will know the what, why and how of cold sores and fever blisters. You will learn the one thing you must avoid to prevent permanent damage to yourself or someone else when treating a cold sore. Finally, you will discover how to heal them and prevent future outbreaks.

Some folks call them cold sores. Others refer to them as fever blisters. Truth is, they are two different names for the same exact thing. They both are an oral herpes outbreak. Cold sores and fever blisters most commonly occur during or after physical stress such as colds (cold sore) and flu (fever blister). And that is how they got their names. Cold sores are the most common term used for these blisters.

The root cause of these hideous and painful blisters is the herpes simplex virus, type 1 or type 2. We all have various viruses in our bodies at any given time. Most, like cold and flu viruses, eventually disappear. This is not true with the herpes virus. This virus will likely stay with you your entire life. Fortunately, the fever blisters and cold sores oral herpes virus is normally latent. Nearly a third of all those infected will never get an outbreak. They will never even know they carry the herpes virus. The other two-thirds of us will get one or more fever blisters per year.

Cold sores and fever blisters are dangerously contagious.

During an outbreak, you can easily spread the virus to someone else. You can easily spread cold sores to other areas of your body, such as your eyes. Fever blisters on the cornea can cause permanent damage or blindness. Avoid the itching temptation to touch the sore with your bare fingers. Constantly clean with alcohol on cotton balls or swabs. Coat them with a virus killing oil such as garlic or oregano oil. Don't be kissing anyone, anywhere.

How frequent and severe your cold sores depend greatly on your physical condition. It depends on the strength of your immune system. There are several easy ways others have used to quickly heal and prevent cold sores and fever blisters.

Lysine is a popular natural remedy for the herpes virus. It works quite well at a dosage of 1000 to 3000 mg. per day during the event. Those who get frequent blisters often do well taking a daily maintenance dosage of 500 mg. If you can get by without the maintenance dosage you might be better off. Studies have shown that the body may develop a tolerance to lysine.

Every person who is prone to cold sores and fever blisters should be taking a good quality multi-vitamin. This is critical today for a high level of health. It helps to reduce the effects of stress and give you a stronger immunity. And by good quality I do not mean the drug store one or two-per-day junk vitamin pills. They do not contain enough nutrients for your body to notice. And, they often do not dissolve during digestion. I have personally seen them in bedpans. You could still read the brand name on them.

Quite honestly, you will get more nutrition from two ounces of broccoli. Go to a vitamin store or check on-line. Expect dosages of six capsules or three large tablets per day. Better yet, dosage packets are becoming real popular today. That is what I am currently using.

Should the oral herpes virus break through the immune sentries, and you start to feel a burning or itching sensation on your lip or nose, get some ice or something cold on it immediately. This will often send the virus back into hibernation. Herpes simplex virus does not like cold. Acting quickly with the ice is an easy and proven way many cold sore victims use to prevent cold sores and fever blisters.