An estimated 85 million Americans have acquired the herpes simplex (cold sore) virus. And the majority had received the virus before the age of 3.

Not such a big surprise when you realize how many loving Uncles, Aunts and nephew just can't resist that cute little Kissy Kissy baby. Which is exactly how the Herpes Simplex virus is passed along. That innocent little hug and kiss is all it takes to inject a lifetime of the Herpes Simplex virus.

Generally a cold sore will run from 5 to 15 days in its various stages. They will range from a tiny split to an enormous sized seeping scab.

If the virus has gained strong immunities against your antibodies then you will be prone to repeated outbreaks.

Unlike the sexually transmitted Herpes virus there is little to worry about with the Herpes Simplex virus other than an occasional lip sore that can grow to the size of a watermelon and cause every living being to stare at you like you have a 12 inch nose growing out the side of your face.

So the first question to pop into your mind might be, "is there a cure"? No. The herpes simplex virus is very versatile and can adapt to just about anything you can throw at it. It will adapt and become stronger with each form of treatment.

Which brings us to question two. "Is there any particular remedy that has proven to stop or control cold sore outbreaks". Accepting the fact that what was just said in the proceeding paragraph the answer would be yes and no.

Because most immune changes of the virus are minor it leaves it open to possible treatments by various antibiotics and many natural remedies which can temporarily halt an outbreak. However, again the virus will quickly adapt to many of these treatments making them useless on the next outbreak.

So, yes some treatments will work on most outbreaks but there will definitely be a stage of herpes simplex virus immune syndrome that will eventually make most all present day treatments ineffective. Simply meaning the more you try to treat the outbreaks with various medications the sooner you will reach the stage where no treatment will help.

You must also keep in mind that your present overall health conditions and other variables may temporarily slow or stop a remedy from working. So it may not always be the virus but your present health condition that blocks any remedy from working. So, what is your solution for cold sore outbreaks?

If you have the simple small split type sore just let it run the course. Your body will develop antibodies to overpower the virus outbreak which will help keep new outbreaks from happening so repeatedly.

However if you have the major Mt Saint Helen's size outbreak then you can try the various medications and treatments in hopes that you will hit the right one.

A rule of thumb would be not to use remedies that you have recently used in the past simply because of the likelihood that the virus has already become immune to it.

For a list of medications and home remedies see: http://www.bnbmarketing.net/coldsoreremedies.htm