5 Unbelievable Facts About Cold Sores
There is so much to know about cold sores. It makes sense that an almost endless amount of information regarding the virus exists since the infection is experienced by nearly 4 billion people worldwide. Most chronic sufferers understand the misery of an outbreak and the basic details of the virus that causes them. However, they may not know some of these surprising facts about cold sores.
There is a potential connection between cold sores and another unusual syndrome.
Burning mouth syndrome is an uncomfortable condition where the inside of the mouth is sensitive and sore and feels like the skin has suffered a sunburn. Medical professionals often struggle to treat the condition or to provide patients with any relief. One recent medical case discovered that after numerous unsuccessful treatments one patient complaining of this issue was discovered to have numerous HSV-1 particles in her saliva despite not having a single sore. Once she received cold sore treatments the burning sensation faded away.
Research shows a link between HSV-1 and memory loss.
A small medical study revealed that people with higher levels of infection in their system were less successful than others on cognition tests. HSV-1 was one of the three infections included in the study. While the study is not enough to conclusively state that cold sores will lead to memory loss, the experts performing the study feel the results were impressive enough to encourage further testing. Many feel that learning the relationship between infections and memory could help to create more effective treatments for issues like dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease.
The lips are not the only place cold sores target.
Some people never get the sores on their lips. Instead they appear around their nose, on their eyes and on the cheeks. Having something as simple as a facial during an outbreak can easily spread the sores across the face.
Cold sores are sometimes deadly for infants.
Cold sores are usually uncomfortable and annoying, but not dangerous. This is not always the case for infants. Any infant that shows any signs of a cold sore infection including fever, lack of appetite and any rash or blisters should be seen by a doctor immediately. Anyone with an active cold sore infection should stay away infants until they are not longer contagious.
Your lip balm could be to blame.
Repeated outbreaks may not be from a weakened immune system, but from reinfection. A common source of infection is lip balm and lipstick. Throw away these tubes along with toothbrushes or any makeup brushes that come into contact with cold sores.This is also why no one should ever share makeup or lip balm with anyone.
