Although small, mouth ulcers and sores can be extremely painful and make it hard for you to eat, smile and laugh. They can also make you feel run down and tired. Nutritional deficiencies in iron, B12 and folic acid have been linked to painful mouth ulcers. Vitamin C and zinc are also important because they can enhance immune function and aid wound healing.

Other helpful strategies include:

• Good dental hygiene; it really is essential to floss every day
• Eat plenty of salads with raw onions. Onions contain sulphur which has healing properties
• Avoid sugar, citrus fruits and refined, processed foods. Also avoid chewing gum, lozenges, sharp sweets, mouthwashes, tobacco and coffee, as these foods often trigger mouth sores and bad breath
• Stress is one of the most common triggers for mouth sores so pay attention to your stress levels. (Stress can also lead to deficiencies in the B vitamins)

Ulcers may also be allergy related and food allergies can be detected by a simple food allergy test.If your sore or ulcer does not heal within a week consult your doctor.

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 8th, 2007 at 2:24 pm and is filed under General Health, Natural Treatments, Winter Health. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.