Question:
Our 3.5-year-old has been getting some canker sores inside his
mouth and a couple of small ones on the lips. Any idea what causes
these? How to prevent them? How to treat them?
Answer:
I find the best way to treat them is to keep them clean and moist. As
far as over the counter relief is concerned, I like Blistex (the
cream) and Camphopheneque (cream or liquid). The basic
active ingredients are camphor and and phenol. Be careful how you use
it through so as not to infect the container. I have heard of a lot of
supposed cures and preventions. Someone told my wife last week that
lysozyme (found in health food stores) prevents the sores from coming
up. She found out the hard way that this did not work (for her at
least) and actually made the problem worse. I have heard that there are
some new prescription medications used to treat herpes viruses but I
have not had any experiences with these. I also know that anything
containing cortisone should be avoided completely.
The sores can take anywhere from a day to two weeks to clear depending
on circumstances. Certainly, if you think they are unsually agressive
or taking a long time to clear, they should be seen by a doctor
