How To Treat Canker Sores

Hi. I'm Brian Halvorsen and I'm a dentist. I've been in practice for over 35 years, and I have written a book about my principles on holistic dentistry.

The book is called Great Teeth for Life. In this video, I will be talking about mouth ulcers. Most people develop mouth ulcers.

Two causes. One is a virus, herpes simplex, which about 50 percent of the population have within their systems already. When you get a bit rundown, this is when the likelihood of these ulcers occurring and is often characterized by a little stinging in a certain area.

Often you can't see anything, and then, if you have something like tomatoes or something acidic, it hurts a lot. Then, you characteristically see the ulcer come out and really, what an ulcer is, is simply that the top layer of skin has been actually taken off and exposes the more sensitive part of your gum or your lip and this is why it is so sensitive. Unfortunately, once an ulcer has got itself established, it normally takes about twelve days for it to go.

If for any reason, it goes on more than about, say, three weeks, then, it is worthwhile seeing your dentist to make sure that it is just a simple mouth ulcer. The other possible cause of mouth ulcers is the fact that if you just literally scratch your cheek or inside your mouth or your gum, you literally traumatize the surface which then breaks down and basically, has the same effect. Is there anything you can do to prevent mouth ulcerations? Well, I believe there is.

I mentioned about boosting your immune system, and one of the best ways to boost your immune system, for example, is to take relatively high doses of vitamin C. What I have found over many years is that people who take, say, possibly 1,000 milligrams of vitamin C a day, are far less likely to develop mouth ulcers. It also can be a sign of zinc deficiency.

So, often if you take well formulated, multi-mineral vitamin supplement, then this will, hopefully, reduce the chance of mouth ulcers. Now, is there a way that when you know a mouth ulcer is coming on, that you can actually reduce it or stop it? There is, actually. Over the last 10 or 15 years, there are some antiviral creams, that if you notice that first stinging sensation, and you just know that it is an ulcer coming on, by rubbing on, this can actually often stop the ulcer in its tracks.

However, if you put the cream on once it's formed, it tends not to become effective, and then, the only thing you can really do is look at things like putting on proprietary bands like, say, Bongella which, in fact, is a little bit of a local anesthetic to make it sting less. It also has that gel to protect that sort of surface from the friction of food and things like that. That's some advice on how to prevent mouth ulcers and how you possibly could treat them once they start.

Thank you.