Lysine and cold sores - an excellent remedy if used correctly. By the time you are done reading this short article, you will know the truth about using lysine for cold sores.

Lysine for cold sores is in the news a lot. You will find that empirical evidence strongly suggest the power and effectiveness of using lysine for cold sores.

How does cold sore lysine fix and prevent oral herpes cold sore outbreaks? What is the correct way to use it?

Good questions for sure.

However, it is important to know what actually creates the cold sore before using lysine for cold sores.

The primary cause of all cold sore events is the herpes simplex virus. Whether you call them cold sores, fever blisters, or oral herpes outbreaks, they are all the same thing.

90% of the world population carries this terribly contagious virus. It is most common to be exposed to it before 12 years old.

The herpes virus hides in the root area of your facial nerves and will be dormant there most of the time. This is an area located behind either ear. As long as it is hibernating, you will not have any symptoms.

The herpes simplex virus will become active to produce new virus. Since it lives in the nerves, it can quickly tell when your immunity drops. Stress of any sort can create the right conditions for cold sores to happen.

The herpes virus squirms through the nerve fibers to the surface of your skin. Once there, the virus will enter the nerve cells.

The cold sore virus then makes the cell create new virus copies. Once the cell is filled to capacity, it bursts open and the new virus gushes out, looking for a home.

Your open cold sore is caused by this destruction of millions of adjacent cells.

Arginine, an amino acid, is the main ingredient your cells need to create this new herpes virus. Arginine is a common protein found in many foods. Chocolate and nuts are quite rich in this protein.

Your cells have a specific area within the cell for storing amino acids such as arginine.

Lysine is also an essential amino acid. Dairy and fish are good sources of lysine. New herpes virus can not be created using lysine. It is like putting water in your gas tank.

Lysine is stored in the same area as arginine in your cells. And, the more lysine your cells put away, the less room it has for arginine.

You can easily lower the cell’s arginine supply by raising lysine intake. This is a tactic many people use to stop the progression of a cold sore and prevent future oral herpes outbreaks. You are, in affect, starving out the virus.

Lysine and arginine fight each other. Increase lysine in your diet with vegetables, fish and dairy products. Decrease arginine in your diet by leaving out arginine foods such as chocolate, nuts and grains.

The trouble is, changing your diet as a way to stop cold sores, fever blisters or oral herpes is not always practical. The best bet for most people are lysine capsules or tablets. They are quite cheap and available everywhere.

Lysine capsules normally come in 500-milligram size. You can get much more lysine into your system this way than trying to eat more lysine food. And you can easily take extra lysine rather than go without chocolate.

Lysine is very safe. Commonly people take 1000 to 4000 milligrams per day during a cold sore and 500 to 1000 milligrams daily as a preventative measure. Again, you can adjust this depending on how often you get them.

But, watch out for the hype.

Lysine for cold sores is awesome when taken as an internal remedy. But it has not been very effective when put directly on the sore.

There are lysine salves on the market for use as cold sore remedies. Lysine must get into the cells to work. Lysine does not absorb through the skin. You must take it orally for good results.

Lysine for cold sores is one of the more proven and convenient cold sore remedies that you should be using.

There is much more you should know about lysine for cold sores - and other great cold sore remedies. But, there is just not enough room to cover it all in one article. It would be to your benefit to explore some of my other free articles.

If you are a victim of long duration or frequent cold sore events, lysine is an excellent choice. But do not stop there. There are many other great cold sore remedies. You may find some will work even better for you than lysine for cold sores.