Natural Home Remedies for Canker Sores

You can find over-the-counter antiseptic creams, lozenges, and mouthwashes at your local pharmacy to help relieve canker sore pain. But you can also find home remedy relief over the kitchen counter in some common and not-so-common kitchen staples.

Home Remedies From the Cupboard

Baking soda. Make a baking soda and water paste and apply to the canker. Baking soda is also a component of a canker sore mouth rinse (see "Salt", below).

Cranberry juice. Drink this juice between meals: It's both a pain reliever and canker healer.

Honey. Mix 1 teaspoon honey with 1/4 teaspoon turmeric and dab it on your canker. This one may sting a bit.

Salt. Combine 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and 2 ounces hydrogen peroxide. Mix and rinse your mouth with it four times daily. If the taste is too strong, or the tingle uncomfortable, dilute with 2 ounces water. You can also just rinse your mouth with lukewarm salt water. Or, if you're brave, just apply a little salt directly to your wound.

Tea. Moisten a regular tea bag and apply it directly to the canker. The tannic acid will help dry it out.

Home Remedies From the Freezer

Ice. This won't make the canker disappear, but it will sure make it feel better. Simply apply ice or rinse your mouth with ice water.

©2007 Publications International, Ltd. Aloe juice is a natural treatment for canker sores.

Home Remedies From the Spice Rack

Cayenne pepper. Cayenne contains capsaicin, a constituent that temporarily desensitizes the nerves that cause pain. That's why cayenne pepper is in some candy recipes designed to relieve canker sore pain. This type of candy is also used to relieve mouth sores from chemotherapy and radiation, too. Be careful, though, as capsaicin may be too irritating for some people.

Sage. Used most often to spice up turkey stuffing, this herb can be used to calm an angry canker. Simply add 3 teaspoons sage leaves to 1 pint boiling water. Steep, covered, for 15 minutes. Rinse your mouth with the liquid several times a day. You can also rub sage leaves into a powder and apply them directly to your sore.

Home Remedies From the Supplement Shelf

Minerals. A mineral deficiency is suspected of being a cause of canker sores. Make sure you get enough of the right minerals in your diet by checking with your doctor.

Vitamins. A vitamin deficiency is also suspected of being a cause of canker sores. Make sure you get enough vitamins in your diet by consulting your doctor.

Home Remedies From the Windowsill

Aloe. That beautiful aloe plant sitting on your sill has some quite potent curative powers. A little aloe juice from the juicy inner portion of the leaf rinsed over the canker several times daily could be just what you need.

Canker sores can be a painful nuisance, but there are simple, everyday home remedies you can use to relieve some of the discomfort. Using the advice in this article, you should have no problem keeping your mouth healthy.

For more information on remedies for conditions affecting the mouth, try the following links:

• To see all of our home remedies and the conditions they treat, go to our main Home Remedies page.
  
• Home Remedies for Cold Sores gives helpful advice for another type of sore that develops around the mouth.
• For tips on keeping your mouth clean and healthy, read How Oral Hygiene Works.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Timothy Gower is a freelance writer and editor whose work has appeared in many publications, including Reader's Digest, Prevention, Men's Health, Better Homes and Gardens, The New York Times, and The Los Angeles Times. The author of four books, Gower is also a contributing editor for Health magazine.

Alice Lesch Kelly is a health writer based in Boston. Her work has been published in magazines such as Shape, Fit Pregnancy, Woman's Day, Reader's Digest, Eating Well, and Health. She is the co-author of three books on women's health.

Linnea Lundgren has more than 12 years experience researching, writing, and editing for newspapers and magazines. She is the author of four books, including Living Well With Allergies.

Michele Price Mann is a freelance writer who has written for such publications as Weight Watchers and Southern Living magazines. Formerly assistant health and fitness editor at Cooking Light magazine, her professional passion is learning and writing about health.

ABOUT THE CONSULTANTS:

Ivan Oransky, M.D., is the deputy editor of The Scientist. He is author or co-author of four books, including The Common Symptom Answer Guide, and has written for publications including the Boston Globe, The Lancet, and USA Today. He holds appointments as a clinical assistant professor of medicine and as adjunct professor of journalism at New York University.

David J. Hufford, Ph.D., is university professor and chair of the Medical Humanities Department at Pennsylvania State University's College of Medicine. He also is a professor in the departments of Neural and Behavioral Sciences and Family and Community Medicine. Dr. Hufford serves on the editorial boards of several journals, including Alternative Therapies in Health & Medicine and Explore.

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