What Causes Cold Sores and How To Avoid A Cold Sore

by Denny Bodoh

What causes cold sores, fever blisters and oral herpes? If you will let me right now, I will reveal what causes cold sores in most sufferers.

What causes cold sores, basically, is the herpes simplex virus. It comes in two varieties - type 1 and type 2. Both create identical sores. Most common is type 1 which is responsible for about 80% of the outbreaks.

Normally the herpes virus is asleep, deep in the roots of your facial nerves. For about 35% of those infected, it never wakes up. But the majority of those infected will have at least one cold sore attack in the next 10 months.

If the herpes virus senses the right conditions, it will travel through the nerves to the surface of your face. It enters surface nerve cells and makes them create clones of the virus.

When you see the swelling, the cells are filling up with new virus. When full, they burst open. This releases the virus particles and creates the visible sore.

Basically, the herpes simplex virus is what causes cold sores, fever blisters and oral herpes sores. But, we really need to focus on is what conditions we can avoid to keep the virus from becoming active.

There are a number of things that can cause the virus to activate. Below you will discover the three triggers responsible for 99% of the outbreaks.

1. LOW LEVEL OF IMMUNITY.

An effective immune response is directly related to the quality of your antibodies. Certain factors must be available for your body to build great antibodies.

The strength of your antibodies is directly affected by the quality and quantity of nutrients in your diet. This includes both food and nutritional supplements.

Frequent cold sore events mean your immune system is too weak to protect you. You should begin eating more vegetables - especially those grown organically. Your best quality nutrients, by far, come from the foods you eat.

Take a high-quality vitamin supplement every day. This alone aids in preventing cold sores for a lot of people. But do not waste your money on those rip-off drug store one or two-a-day pills.

Find a reputable store that specializes in vitamins. They will have the quality products you need. Look for high levels of B and C vitamins. These burn up fast when under stress.

2. HIGH ARGININE CONTENT IN THE CELLS.

Arginine and lysine are two very important amino acids critical to your good health. The also are important when it comes to cold sores, fever blisters and oral herpes.

Arginine is an essential ingredient in the creation of herpes simplex virus. If not enough is available, the cell cannot create virus clones. This means no cold sore will appear.

Lysine, on the other hand, is a protein that cannot be used to create herpes simplex virus. The cells have a shared storage area for lysine and arginine. More of one leaves less room for the other.

Increasing your intake of lysine, and saturating your cells with it, will reduce the arginine stored in the cells. Eating lysine foods, such as dairy products, is your best source of body-ready lysine. Lysine supplements work great too.

3. YOUR ACID-ALKLINE BALANCE IS TOWARD THE ACID SIDE.

To remain in perfect health, your body needs to be on the alkaline side of the pH scale. The pH scale has 14 points. 7 is neutral. Below 7 is acid and above 7 is alkaline.

Normally your body will stay between pH 6.5 to 7.4. When your body drops below 7, it is turning acid and will invite herpes simplex virus to become active - ultimately causing cold sores.

When your body is on the acid side, your oxygen levels are lower also. Since this is a perfect condition for viruses, your herpes simplex virus may come out of hiding. Carbonated drinks and sugar cause your body to go acid.

Cold sores are more frequent in the winter months because of the many acid-producing factors. These include cold temperatures, less outdoor exposure and exercise, lower vegetable intake and drinks like coffee and cocoa.

If you have a cold sore problem, avoid the acid foods mentioned previously. To keep your pH level alkaline is easy. Eat calcium-rich green vegetables such as cabbage and asparagus. Vitamin stores have alkaline-raising supplements too.

If you want to know what causes cold sores, there is much more we could talk about. But, the three things mentioned in this article will likely answer what causes cold sores for you.

About the Author:

Cold Sore questions? Check out Denny Bodoh's popular website bursting with great information on Cold Sores. Walk away with some amazing Cold Sore cures and remedies that actually work.