Recurring canker sores

[LaraW]

My whole life, I have always had very occasional canker sores. They seem to follow a pattern, where they flare up, I treat them and they go away quickly.

Recently, the past 2 months or so, I have had 1 canker sore that keeps coming back. It will flare up, I treat it and it goes away for a day or 2, then comes back. It had healed a couple weeks ago, but it is starting to come back.

It is in the same place, and I noticed it this morning when I got up.

AF is due later this week, so I know that the chemistry in my body is probably a bit different b/c of that, but this is really getting annoying.

Are there things I need to be worried about, with this one that won't go away? Is this something I need to call the doctor (dentist?) over?

[LakeMartinGal]

Strange as this sounds, you might ask a rheumatologist -- we found out (too late) that this and other unexplained random complaints may be symptoms of rheumatoid or other types of arthritis.

[VictoriaL]

I, too, had occasional flare-ups of canker sores during my adult life and for a period of a few months last year they just would not stop. One would go away, then another would appear, all in the same two or three areas.

After trying a lot of things, I found that when I begin to feel one starting I run to the cabinet and take a B-complex (I have these vitamins in my daily multi, but I take this as an "extra") and L-Lysine (500mg, twice a day on an empty stomach). I keep up the extra B's and the L-lysine for 4 or 5 days. This has worked wonderfully for me and I haven't had more than a "tingle" ever since.

Hope it works for you, too. :) Those things are completely miserable!

[wallycat]

Two things you can try:
L-Lysine (an amino acid) found as a supplement in the health food store usually does the trick.
Also, make sure you are taking enough vitamin D.
We're hearing some anecdotal evidence from folks who routinely get cold sores that have never returned when they took about 2-5000 IU of vitamin D daily (it is safe).

Finally, I would go to derm to rule out basal cell carcinoma or some other thing that may look like a cold sore but isn't.

Best to you!

[syzygy]

Also, there is a Rembrandt toothpaste specifically for people who get canker sores. It REALLY helps! Drastically cut back on flare-ups. (The culprit is the sodium lauryl sulfate found in most toothpastes and this toothpaste doesn't have it)

[DeeK]

Also, there is a Rembrandt toothpaste specifically for people who get canker sores. It REALLY helps! Drastically cut back on flare-ups. (The culprit is the sodium lauryl sulfate found in most toothpastes and this toothpaste doesn't have it)

Thank you for that info. I'm not the OP, but do suffer from the occasional canker sore.

To the OP ... is it possible that you are biting that area in your sleep. That is usually how I end up with a canker sore. :mad: Then once it is irritated and a little bit swollen -- I'll get it again and again.

[raka1214]

I have suffered with canker like sores in my mouth my whole life. I remember being a little girl and biting into a tomato sandwich and having to spit it out because the acid hit the sore in my mouth.

Unfortunately my would always come up on my tongue - gross I know and probably TMI but that's the way it is.

When I was in the 9th grade I started having such bad, regular flare ups that my mom finally took me to the doctor - he sent me to an ENT and they tried all kinds of things from not chewing bubble gum/sucking on suckers to coating my tongue with this Venetian Purple salve to cover the sore - nothing worked. They finally did a biopsy and basically stated that it was the equivilant of a cold sore brought on by low grade fevers that, due to my changing hormones and the introduction of AF in my life, were just in a flareup right then. They recommend no treatments, nothing, and basically told me I would have to wait them out.

20+ years later I have a friend who is a pharmacist and we were having dinner together one night and I declined a tomato paste on a dish because I was in the middle of a very painful flare up. When he questioned me as to what was going on I told him the story and he told me he had just the thing for me. He took me to the local CVS and bought this stuff called "Glyoxide" and told me to place 10 drops in my mouth AFTER brushing my teeth, swirl around for 15 seconds and spit - do not rinse afterwards and see if that would help.

OMG:eek: - you would have thought I had won an Oscar or something - cleared it out within 2 PAINLESS days instead of the normal 7 - 10 days I had been suffering through. It is basically a concentrated hydrogen peroxide gel formula that tastes TERRIBLE but does the trick for me. Now, I start to feel one come up and I hit the bottle and it never even comes up anymore.

[EmilyD]

I get these occasionally too. Seems to run in my family as my mom and grandmother did too. Our trigger seems to be eating too much of a particular food. One is fresh tomatoes (cooked don't seem to be an issue) and the other is chocolate :(:( I can do without the tomatoes but I suffer for chocolate ;) Actually tho, as long as I enjoy it in moderation I don't have problems. But as a kid I had flare-ups every Easter, Halloween, etc. when chocolate was plentiful. Now I have the self-control to limit myself to just a few bites a day and that seems to do the trick. Perhaps if you think back to what you've been eating more of lately (something recently "in season" perhaps) there might be a correlation?

The other time I have them is when I bite my lip or inside my mouth. About half the time the sore becomes a canker sore. Frequently, the area is slightly swollen and I'm more prone to biting it again, which futher aggravates it and make it more likely to "turn".

I do take a multi-vitamin and have tried taking the other supplements recommended but they haven't made a difference *for me* but I hope that helps you!

One other thing is that my dentist prescribed me a paste that I apply in the evening to the sore when I first notice it. Don't recall the name of the stuff off the top of my head but for me it stops the sore in its tracks. Usually it's practically healed in the morning. (Which is good because the stuff is goopy and I don't think I could be awake with it in my mouth but it really does cure it quickly.) PM me (OP or others) if you're interested in the name and I can check the Rx cabinet when I get home.

Good luck in getting to the root of the issue and finding the solution that works best for you!

[wallycat]

I have suffered with canker like sores in my mouth my whole life. I remember being a little girl and biting into a tomato sandwich and having to spit it out because the acid hit the sore in my mouth.

Unfortunately my would always come up on my tongue - gross I know and probably TMI but that's the way it is.

When I was in the 9th grade I started having such bad, regular flare ups that my mom finally took me to the doctor - he sent me to an ENT and they tried all kinds of things from not chewing bubble gum/sucking on suckers to coating my tongue with this Venetian Purple salve to cover the sore - nothing worked. They finally did a biopsy and basically stated that it was the equivilant of a cold sore brought on by low grade fevers that, due to my changing hormones and the introduction of AF in my life, were just in a flareup right then. They recommend no treatments, nothing, and basically told me I would have to wait them out.

20+ years later I have a friend who is a pharmacist and we were having dinner together one night and I declined a tomato paste on a dish because I was in the middle of a very painful flare up. When he questioned me as to what was going on I told him the story and he told me he had just the thing for me. He took me to the local CVS and bought this stuff called "Glyoxide" and told me to place 10 drops in my mouth AFTER brushing my teeth, swirl around for 15 seconds and spit - do not rinse afterwards and see if that would help.

OMG:eek: - you would have thought I had won an Oscar or something - cleared it out within 2 PAINLESS days instead of the normal 7 - 10 days I had been suffering through. It is basically a concentrated hydrogen peroxide gel formula that tastes TERRIBLE but does the trick for me. Now, I start to feel one come up and I hit the bottle and it never even comes up anymore.

I thought fever blisters were different from canker sores. Canker sores are very painful and inside the mouth.
Fever blisters (herpes simplex) on the outside of mucosa (like lip area).

[raka1214]

I thought fever blisters were different from canker sores. Canker sores are very painful and inside the mouth.
Fever blisters (herpes simplex) on the outside of mucosa (like lip area).


They are techinically different - that is just the comparison made by the ENT when they did my biopsy. My canker sores are not triggered by food but by fluctuations in my bodies temperature/hormones. Trust me, they are in my mouth - usually right in the middle of my tongue or on the side of it and VERY painful.

[DeeK]

They are techinically different - that is just the comparison made by the ENT when they did my biopsy. My canker sores are not triggered by food but by fluctuations in my bodies temperature/hormones. Trust me, they are in my mouth - usually right in the middle of my tongue or on the side of it and VERY painful.

That's where I usually get mine too. I have one on the very tip of my tongue right now and I'm ready for it to be GONE.

[Valerie226]

Also, there is a Rembrandt toothpaste specifically for people who get canker sores. It REALLY helps! Drastically cut back on flare-ups. (The culprit is the sodium lauryl sulfate found in most toothpastes and this toothpaste doesn't have it)

I was going to suggest toothpaste as the culprit. I'm thinking the Graedon's pharmacy column addressed this issue. there may be info on this on their web site. I'm spacing out on the name of their newspaper column right now... but switching toothpaste is painless.

[Valerie226]

http://www.peoplespharmacy.com/

plug in "canker sore" in the search box and there's a string of comments about different toothpastes and sodium lauryl sulfate. also ideas on canker sore cures others have reported. good luck!.

[LaraW]

Thanks for the ideas everyone - sorry I have not been able to get back here. :)

Anyhow, of course as soon as I posted this, this particular sore didn't develop the way I thought it would. I have not really done anything to treat it and I thought it was going to flare up but never really did.

I don't know if I'm biting it in my sleep. I tried to bite the area on purpose and it was not really easy to get to.

It seems that drinking water throughout the day seems to help. I don't know if its just flushing it out and keeping it clean or what. I rinse w/ listerine before bed and that seems to help too.

I will keep this thread for ideas though- they are very helpful. I have a dentist appointment in a few weeks so maybe I can have him look at it then if its still there.

[Chris415]

I too develop these on a frequent basis, at least in adulthood. I don't know anyone else who has this problem, so I've researched through the years and came up with my own pocket guide! ;)

1. Acidic food, like tomatoes and chocolate that were mentioned, as well as vinegar (for me) are big triggers. I love salads, but try to go light on the vinegar. I also find stress plays a BIG role. If I'm stressed or worried, sure as shootin' I'll get one.
2. The lycine method does work! I would take it when I felt one was coming on, but once it's there, unfortunately, you've got it. :(
3. I try to eat yogurt every day. For some reason, the bacteria in it is good for the mouth.
4. When I am desperate, I will wet my finger, dip it in salt, and apply it to the sore. Yowee!!! :eek: But it works, once you wipe your tears away!

I'm glad to know I'm not the only person who has to deal with these nasties!
Chris