3 Home Remedies to Get Rid of a Canker Sore Fast

We are exposed to so many sugar temptations on a daily basis. It doesn’t matter if it’s a sweet beverage, cake at a company party, a paleo delectable, or a vegan pie, sweets are everywhere.

And with overindulgence in sweet foods comes the increased risk of canker sores.

If you aren’t familiar with canker sores, consider yourself fortunate, because they can be very painful.

There are many ways to naturally address and prevent canker sores. In today’s article, we’ll share a few easy home remedies to help you get rid of a canker sore fast.

The connection between sweet foods and the mouth

In traditional Chinese medical thought, sweet foods stimulate the spleen and stomach. This makes sense if you consider the common habit of having something sweet after a meal (it promotes and stimulates digestion).

The mouth also relates to the spleen and stomach. Overindulgence in sweet foods causes an imbalance in the spleen/stomach, which can stress out the mouth and result in canker sores.

Eating sweets also causes a corresponding change in the oral microbiome and the pH of the mouth.

We all know the ultimate ‘answer’ to this situation, but I’ll say it quietly to avoid alarming anyone’s ‘internal sugar dragon’ (mine included). 🙂

Knowing what foods undermine our oral health and reducing the amount of sweet foods that we consume helps restore balance in the mouth (and body). Maintaining the balance can help us avoid developing canker sores in the first place.

But what if you already have one? Once it’s already developed, it needs time to heal.

Here are a few helpful ‘on-the-go’ tips to support the stressed tissue and quickly heal a canker sore.

1. Offer topical support

Apply a solution that will soothe stressed tissue and that contains some natural antimicrobial and antifungal qualities. Our HealThy Mouth Blend serves this purpose very well (of course, we’re biased).

As we discuss in our article, ‘What’s in the HealThy Mouth Blend? (And why is it so effective?)‘, one of the ingredients in the blend is myrrh.

Myrrh has been used since before biblical times to soothe stressed, traumatized tissue and promote a healing environment.

2. Homeopathic remedy to the rescue

If you aren’t familiar with homeopathic medicine, it’s an ancestor of our modern medical system. We have experienced wonderful health turnarounds using homeopathic remedies.

There is a specific homeopathic remedy for canker sores (it doesn’t get any more straightforward than that!). It’s called ‘Borax’. Yup, that’s the same name as the stuff that some folks use to clean their laundry.

You can find the homeopathic remedy Borax at your local health food store, or here’s a link to it on Amazon.

3. Direct pressure

Eating lots of sweet foods, especially chronic overindulgence in them, causes the tissues in the mouth and tongue to swell (yes, tongues can get ‘overweight’).

This tissue swelling increases the risk of biting the tongue or cheek, which can lead to a canker sore.

Also, if you accidentally chomp down on an existing canker sore, the trauma could cause the area to become even more inflamed, which further increases the risk of re-biting the injured tissue.

Ouch! Been there, done that.

One thing that might help is to use your (clean) finger and thumb to try applying direct pressure to the injured area.

To do this, put either your finger or thumb inside your mouth and the other outside. Then simultaneously apply gentle pressure to the region from both sides (‘inside’ and ‘outside’) of your cheek.

This method of ‘pinching’ the region will help diminish swelling in the area.

Gently apply pressure to the area for 5-10 seconds and see if it becomes less aggravated/inflamed. This can be especially helpful after a recent accidental cheek chomp.

While pinching, if you add a little prayer of, “I love my cheek tissue. My cheek tissue is healthy and strong”, you get extra credit in supporting the healing process! 🙂

Wrapping up…

So, the occasional sweet treat is ok, but remember to play ‘the long game’ and feel good about your choices while you moderate your intake of sweets.

Stressing ourselves out by trying to maintain some image we have of a ‘perfect diet’ directly undermines our ability to optimize our immune systems.

Instead, just be conscious of your choices. Enjoy that sweet treat and really bring your attention to the pleasure of eating it.

When we increase our focus on enjoying the moment, we reduce the risk of unconsciously over-consuming sweets. That’s playing ‘the long game’.

For more dietary tips to help support your oral health, feel free to check out our articles, “Can fruit play a part in a cavity-free diet?” and “Why eating healthy fats is our #1 diet hack to heal cavities“.

Remember, the path to optimal oral health is a marathon, not a sprint.

What about you? What remedies have you tried to help get rid of a canker sore fast? Please share your experiences in the comments below so we can all learn from each other!

Also, if you know someone who suffers from chronic canker sores, please help us help them by sharing this article.

Aloha!

Helpful, Related Resources:

How to Get Rid of Canker Sores Naturally [article]
How to Balance Your Oral Flora [article]
Tracking Your Saliva pH as a Tool to Optimal Oral Health [article and free download]
What Foods Undermine Our Oral Health and Why [article]
OraWellness HealThy Mouth Blend [product solution]
What’s in the HealThy Mouth Blend? (And why is it so effective?)[article]
Can fruit play a part in a cavity-free diet? [article]
Why eating healthy fats is our #1 diet hack to heal cavities [article]

Other Resources:

Borax Homeopathic Remedy on Amazon [product solution]