Have you ever watched the MythBusters show on the discovery channel? If you haven’t, the show is about a team of “scientists” investigating a variety of scenarios (usually taken from the movies) to see if they really work in real life. They try to disprove the myths using scientific experiments. In the spirit of the show, I thought I’d investigate the myths surrounding the cold sore cure.
The history
On the MythBusters show, they usually start off by talking about the origin of the myth, so I’ll try to do the same here. Cold sores have caused discomfort to patients all over the world, and there are some scientists who believe that 90% of the world’s population suffers from the herpes virus (also known as the HSV-1 virus) in one form or another.
For as long as there have been cases of herpes, desperate patients have searched for how to treat cold sore outbreaks, and many victims have shown a special interest in a natural cure for cold sores. If you’ve ever had this condition, you’ve likely tried various forms of creams and lotions to eliminate pain. This brings us to the question of a cold sore cure: is it a myth or a reality?
The myth
To answer this question accurately, we really need to decide what we mean by Cure Wellness. For most patients looking for a herpes remedy, the word cure probably means complete eradication of the disease – in other words, never having to suffer from any symptoms again. If this is your definition, then we might have to declare the cure a myth.
Like many other illnesses, from the common cold to HIV to cancer, there is no known cure for the herpes virus that causes cold sores. From a doctor’s perspective, there are treatments for viruses, but these rarely (if ever) actually get rid of the virus. You are depressed? Well, you shouldn’t be, keep reading.
The hope
With all the controversy about cold sore treatments, you may be wondering if your cold sore will ever heal. Well, from a practical perspective, if the treatment eliminates the symptoms that the patient was experiencing, then we can say that the “cure” was successful. There are ways to help you get back to your normal life and get pretty close to the cure.