8 Home Remedies for Cold Sores

Published by

Clare Whitfield

Last Updated

December 15, 2025

Close-up of lips with cosmetic tattooing for enhanced shape and colour.

5. Baking Soda

via Paleo Plan

Baking soda strikes again and this time, it’s to save the day if you have a cold sore. Create a paste out of baking soda using warm water and apply it to your lips. Let the mixture dry on your lips and on the cold sore. The theory is that the mixture will dry up the moisture and kill the virus.

6. Rubbing Alcohol or Nail Polish Remover�

Here is one not to be tested on the kids but many sufferers of cold sores swear on this method. The reason rubbing alcohol and acetone or nail polish remover works is because it kills the virus and dries out the cold sore. You can expect the cold sore to be gone in 24 hours to four days. Soak a cotton ball into the mixture and dab it onto the cold sore. Then apply Chap Stick to the area.

Next Page: More�Home Remedies for Cold Sores

Clare Whitfield Chief Editor

Clare Whitfield is the Editor of Stay at Home Mum and a recognised voice in practical home management for Australian families. Based in the northern suburbs of Sydney, she balances editorial leadership with life as a stay at home mum to two school age children. Her background in home economics and more than a decade of experience in recipe development, family budgeting, and household systems inform her work.

See Full Bio

Share the post

Discover more from Stay at Home Mum

Subscribe to get the latest posts to your email

Responses to “8 Home Remedies for Cold Sores”

tam

September 12, 2013

Glen 20 sprayed onto a cotton ball works…says right on the can it kills the herpes simplex virus 🙂

Reply
Pinky

September 12, 2013

ice! hold an icy pole or freezer block to it and it stops it growing.

Reply
sandii g

September 12, 2013

L-lysene is great at preventing them and reducing the duration. Well documented. Available from the chemist. It’s in the vitamin section. Hubby takes it once a day to prevent them and then twice a day if he gets one. Some people need a higher dosage though.

Reply
Tania

September 12, 2013

I mix tea tree into a medium like vaseline or paw paw and I apply every night as a preventer (and moisturiser for my lips) then if I do get one (which inevitably happens) I apply tea tree directly to the area for a couple of days. It gen works well as a preventer and reduces the time that the infection is about. The mix is good for children as the paw paw or vas reduces the sting. Good tip about the toothbrush though.

Reply
Christine Sirko

September 12, 2013

the tv show The Doctors recommended eye drops for cold sores and pimples

Reply
Naomi Greenwood

November 14, 2013

Cosmetic friendly coconut oil used like the cold sore cream along with the L lysine tabs

Reply