You can get rid of a cold sore quickly and safely with the proven tips revealed in this article. If you have a big event or date coming up, help is a minute away.

To effectively get rid of a cold sore, you first need to fully understand how this parasite virus does its damage.

Herpes simplex virus causes cold sores by destroying millions of surface cells in its process of creating new copies of itself. These exploded cells merge to create one large ulcer.

Good News - the herpes virus is normally latent deep in the nerve cells. It will ONLY come alive and start replicating when it senses the conditions are just right. Mental and physical stress are considered the cold sore triggers.

Change in your body is caused by stress. These changes will provide ideal conditions for virus replication. Some important effects of stress are hormone changes, rapid burning of the B and C vitamins, over-taxing your immune system, and a shift of the acid/alkaline balance toward the acid side.

Your body knows how to get rid of a cold sore and will do so without any additional help or expensive cold sore treatment. But, if you are like me, you do not want to suffer any longer than need be - so let us shorten that up.

You want to get rid of a cold sore as quick as possible and here are a few tricks that will do just that.

1. COOLING DOWN A HOT VIRUS. The cold sore virus likes it warm (and will actually create heat) to replicate. Cooling the area down will slow down this process. Ice is the best. You may be lucky and even send the virus back into hibernation with this little trick.

2. COLD SORE VIRUS HATES LYSINE. Lysine and arginine are the two main amino acids that play a role in cold sore virus replication. The more lysine you take, the less arginine will be stored in your cells. The virus uses arginine as a building block for new virus. If the virus does not find enough arginine in the cells, it will give up and go back into hibernation. Normal lysine dosage during a cold sore is 2000 to 4000 milligrams per 24-hour period.

3. DESTROY THE EVIL VIRUS. Keep the cold sore clean and kill tons of virus by applying hydrogen peroxide with a cotton ball or swab. It may sting and fizz. It will destroy any virus it touches, and adds a healing dose of oxygen to the wound. Although alcohol will work, this is a better way to get rid of a cold sore.

4. DO NOT FEED THE VIRUS. Avoid eating acid type foods - especially where they may touch the cold sore. Vinegar items and tomatoes are common offenders. Try taking a good vitamin and mineral supplement to help keep your body more alkaline - which will discourage future cold sores too.

Here are a couple final things that will clarify and help you in your quest to get rid of your cold sore.

Everybody should be taking a good vitamin and mineral supplement every single day. It really can help prevent cold sores. It prevents a shortage of the critical B and C vitamins, helping to reduce stress. It also keeps your body well stocked with alkaline minerals so it does not have to suck calcium from your bones.

Finally, the ice treatment will give excellent results if used BEFORE the damage is done. Once the sore opens up, ice will slow healing by driving blood away. Now use warmth to get rid of a cold sore more quickly.

Good luck. These are just a few of the many powerful tactics proven to get rid of cold sores quickly and safely right now.