Home : Health : Remedies : Cold sores : Cold sore removed with Nail Polish Remover

(61) comments about this tip

Cold sore removed with Nail Polish Remover

The fastest, most effective way to get rid of a cold sore that I have found is constant application of acetone based nail polish remover. Apply hourly with a Q-tip and then cover with Abbreva.

Take care not to get the cold sore wet and immediately upon exiting the shower dry it with the nail polish remover and the Abbreva. This should dry it out within 24 hours.

Visitors comments

MILK: The Magic Cure Comments By: Mad Dog I have found that applying milk constantly for 10 seconds at a time seems to reduce redness.   Nail Polish Remover is the way to go!!! Comments By: Denise D I have been suffering with cold sores for years. I have tried everything. Camphor Spirit is effective but Nail Polish remover is phenomenal. At the first sign of an outbreak, I soak a cotton ball with remover and hold it to my lip. If a sore has already developed it will burn like hell but the sore will dry up in hours. It is a miracle!!   nail polish on cold sore Comments By: Shelly ive just applied the nail polish remover on my cold sore and even the pain has been surpressed it seems to be working so far, but do you have to put a topical treatment on it after applying the polish remover?   nail polish?? Comments By: suzy my dayz!!!!!! im so depressed!! ma 2nd day of ma lovely coldsore!! ma lip looks BIG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :O :O :O and im goin away UNI TRIP :s on sunday!! tried warn water rubbing it..tries this cream is called coldsore cream by loyds farmacy!! it still there so i tried da nailpolish thing..andit dried it up and da pains kinda gone...untill i start talkin again..oh dont even think about eatin..im tellin u!! so yea!! well see!! ill try it again!! plus ive made doctor appointment see what they say :D   WOW! NAIL POLISH IS A MIRACLE! I PROMISE! Comments By: Madison Ive suffered with cold sores since I can remember. Probably sometime since 6th grade. It is and was so embarrassing to go to school with a cold sore, so I would usually skip school because of the embarrassment. So one day my mom called and told me to use nail polish remover because she had read people's comments on how much it REALLY works. So I was like what the hell, I might as well try it. And it really worked!!!! I promise! I always feel bad for saying I promise to God, but seriously,I promise to God!   Burns lol, however .. Comments By: Deano. hey, thanks for the info. i started getting a cold sore yesterday ( and i had no cream or anything) i quarrantined it using a plaster. I am now using this method on a HUGE coldsore attacking the crease above my chin, i poped the blisters, put the remover on for 3min then soaked a plaster and put it on , It burns but what i've red a fully grown one does and it has already taken care of the itchyness. I will repeat this thanks!!!!   OMG Comments By: Daniel My friend at school told me to use nail polish remover and I didn't believe her because she can be a bitch sometimes but I went home and was desperate so I used it and it like started getting hard fast and it all dried up really fast. Its the best method!   jesus crist! Comments By: alysha i was reading peoples comments and i was a little scared but i did it anyways. and it works wonders!! thank you so much for posting this, your a life saver :)   yes Comments By: sophie nail polish remover does have an effect, it reduces the size of the sore, the pain of the sore and the lenght you have it for. When i apply nail polish remover to a cold sore, they usually last 3-4 and they are nowhere near as visibible as usual!   with vodka Comments By: Sp Believe me, applying nail polish remover with vodka or any other spirit works completely. I woke up around 10am with a massive coldsore, i applied nail varnish remover for about a minuite using a q-tip, then i applied vodka the same away, it alredy started to work. I repeated this for around half an hour. It is now 1pm and i now have no cold sore, just a little red patch that looks like a spot which is going down. Also i apply vaseline onto where it was every so often. This really does work.   Nail Polish Remover Comments By: Dr. Mansen Yesterday I felt a Cold Sore coming on while i was at work i imeediately ran to cvs to buy the OTC prescription for cold sore, abreva which i thought would stop it from coming out. I applied the creme to the affected area overnight only to wake up in the morning with a huge sore on my lower lip, the abreva didnt work for me. Abreva actually moisturizes the afected area making it bigger b4 it gets any smaller, so instead Ive been applying nail polish remover to the sore since about 7am this morning, it is now 1pm and my sore is more than half the size it was this morning. its already scabbing and should be gone by tomorrow as long as i keep applying the nail polish. Nail polsih dries it out very quickly. Also some ways to prevent breakputs from occuring more often, is to avoid splenda or anything that has aspartame in it. Ive done some research and these artifical sweeteners trigger outbreaks. Aside form avoiding these, buy the vitamin form of L-Lysine and take one daily to prevent outbreaks. Switch between vitamin b and lysine about every 3 months to keep the virus dormant.   it burns.... and im getting dizzy Comments By: Kim im trying this remedy as we speak.... it burns but i hope its gone by tomorrow because its my boyfriends bday, and im soooo emberrased for him to see me like this.... its so nasty and icky.... plzzzz god i hope it works.   Nail Polish Comments By: Corinne I just started using it this morning and I will report back with what happens. Abreva NEVER works for me and I always break out for a FULL two weeks and my sore is always in the same place. It starts small then runs down my face. This morning I took a needle and soaked it in nail polish remover, popped the blister and soaked up the fluid with a cotton pad. Then I applied the nail polish remover with the cotton pad. I will keep applying the nail polish remover throughout the day. I pray this works! I have a vacation planned in 3 days and I really don't like pictures of me with this nasty thing on my face!!!!!!   NEVER AGAIN!!! Comments By: Anon I tried the nail polish remover and not only did it burn like a son of a b#*!, but it left a scar the size of the cold sore. Instead of the usual 7-10 days mine lasted a complete 14 and then left this hideous scar to remind me to never try this again.   it works Comments By: anon over the moon it really does work. i hope its completly gone for christmas. it shirinks with in 10 mins amazing . try it   Nail Polish Remover is the best! Comments By: Emily After trying like every product on the market, I can say with confidence that Nail polish remover gets rid of cold sores the fastest. My cold sores are gone in a couple of days with the nail polish remover, vs. like 10 days without it. The key though is hitting it as early as possible with the npr. Now if I could just figure out a way to prevent them in the first place. . .   No No No Comments By: Sasha I woke up this morning with a GIGANTIC fever blister that has made my lip swell to 3x its normal size. I have suffered from cold sores/fever blisters my entire life but today was BY FAR the worse. I was desperate to try anything. I gave the nail polish remover a try...and...now my lip is 4x bigger than it should be. And it's redder. I'm really disappointed because it seemed to work for everyone else. I have very sensitive lips so maybe that's why it didn't work. Will never try again! :(   WOW Comments By: Toph This really works!! Even though the nail polish remover smells and burns its worth it!! my coldsores almost gone!   Going to try it! Comments By: EnglandKells Okay guys... I got a whopper of a cold sore. Normally I use Fenistil, but after reading your posts, I just dabbed nail polish remover on it with a cotton pad. Then I put a bit of the fenistil on it after... is this okay?? I will let you all know how the remover works!   not burn as much Comments By: Anon when you put ice on it for about 15 minutes it goes numb and it doesn't burn as much when u put it on   I think I overdid the acetone Comments By: anon I was skeptical about trying nail-polish remover on a cold sore last year. I was desperate, and at the time was getting cold-sore after cold-sore. I tried the acetone and it worked. Its been about a year, and I woke up yesterday with what I know all to well as the first signs of the nasty beast. I grabbed the acetone bottle and some cotton swabs and started soaking away. Later that night, I still wasn't satisfied with how it looked, and really went at it with the acetone. I admit, I might have gotten a little carried away. Literally I was rubbing the acetone soaked cotton back and forth, pretty hard over the bottom left corner of my lip. I woke up this morning, and now theres a dime size sore, that looks like a burn when I was rubbing the acetone. If I thought a cold sore would be obvious, I had no idea what was coming to me. I'm so embarrased right now - and have to go up to Hollywood tomorrow to celebrate my birthday. Putting make up over it makes it appear crusty, and no matter what its obvious.   not sure if this works, idk.. Comments By: Dee idk, i tried this yesterday and it seemed to be working at first, but eventually went back to its original form.right before bed i applied abreva, following the acetone. i woke up this morning with a swollen lip, and the sore still looks the same.   .... Comments By: Anon i'm so happy i read this and gave it a go,, i have to say its worked, size has reduced, not as sore and obvious,,,:-)   Sterilsed needle, ice and nail polish remover Comments By: Becky Ive been suffering with coldsore since i can remember, not just little ones, but massive ones that take over half the lips! i read on here about the nail varnish method and thought i would give it a try, its best doing it on a day off or a weekend though as once you have done it, it swells for a good few hours! I sterilised a needle and popped all the blisters while dabbing it with tissue (horrible but neccessary!) then i put ice on each of the sores for around 5 mins and then dried my lips with tissue, i then applied nail varnish remover to my lips, it completely dried my lips out and its now around 6 hours later and the redness has gone and im only left with a few light scabs and minimal pain, hopefully by the morning it will be even better!   Man I hope this isnt a joke! Comments By: Amy W. I just went and applied some acetone nail polish remover on my lip. I am not gonna lie I am a little scared about whats gonna happen next. Most of the comments have been positive feed back and I HATE when I get fever blisters. Thank God I have a week of vacation that started today! I will let you know how it works for me. Right now I am trying to keep the remover from getting in my mouth. But the blister feels warm so something is working. Cross your fingers for me and Ill cross mine for you!! :) Ill comment again soon with some updates.   update Comments By: Amy W. I put the nail polish remover on for the first time about 30-45 mins ago.. nothing so far. what i am doing now is i have a bandade holding a small piece of cotton ball soaked in polish remover on my blister.. we will see what happens!   hmmm... Comments By: Amy W. well i tried it and at first it was looking like it was working and it seemed like it was drying up and even felt like it was. I applied it with a q tip every 15-20 mins and even put some on a bandaid and let it sit. Now 2 hours later it looks the same again. Red and infected. I have decided Im going to put some tooth paste on it b4 I go to bed and see how that works. Wish me luck! Ill try the polish remover again tomorrow.... We'll see!   dry the crap out of it with acetone Comments By: la tina When my usual methods did not work i went online and tried the home remedies. I happened to have pure acetone (nail polish remover) and started lightly applying it on my lip with several q-tips. Then i got some toilet paper and pressed the crap out of it. Took most of it away. I will be applying a Lysine balm and taking lysine supplements. Tea tree oil is a good antiseptic and Ibuprophen took away most of the swelling.   Works Like A Damn Charm Comments By: COLLEGE STUDENT Had swollen lip/emerging blister last night. Applied 100% acetone nail polish remover to the sore and it was completely gone by this afternoon. Great Tip, Thanks a lot. I have finally found a way to stop these bloody things from happening. To think your day is completely out of your control from a stupid cold sore. THANKS   Fingers Crossed #1 Comments By: ca Just put on the nail polish remover.. its been 20 minutes.. and not much has changed, but it feels like its working so i will give it a 3 at the moment, keep u posted   thanks! Comments By: :) i've gotten cold sores ever since i can remember, try being in grade 2 and having little children ask 'what up with your face' this year it's gotten so bad i've missed days of school because high schoolers know how to make you feel worse about the situation. This morning i woke up snd felt a cold sore coming in the exact same spot i had like 2 weeks ago, i put ice on it for over 20 minutes which not only numbed it for acetone but started a killing process since like most viruses, cold sores hate cold. i can already feel the acetone burning and i think this time it won't be noticable at all, thank you so much to the person who decided to put nail polish on their face! :) I've also heard yogurt helps dry it out so i am going to put some on when i wake up in a couple hours before school. I hope that helps someone!   Taking ur Word...! Comments By: Kathy Joe I woke u this morning with a MAJOR blister right in the middle of my upper lip! And now my lips is huge!!Grrr! Iv tried so many otc meds and NOTHING has worked for me. Its 1pm and im about to try the nail polish remover. From the responses iv read it gave me hope! Keep U Posted!   OK IT WORKED!!!! Comments By: Kathy Joe ok guys so im updating on the whole polish remover idea.... thanks to the genius who ever started that idea. it worked almost immediatly. it is now 12.5am and it is nearly gone!! Thank u Genius!!   worked Comments By: deb I took an old lip balm pot and put in some remover and salt together and applied that mix. What usually takes a week is now at say day 3 only 2hrs in. Amazing   Wow - Amazing Amazing Amazing Comments By: Anon I haven't had a cold sore for years then after arriving home from holiday (having been exposed to bright sunight and being run down) my lip erupted last night. I applied Zovirax immediately to no avail. Woke up this morning with the left side of my bottom lip double in size with a disgusting yellow crusty sore. Called in sick as too embarassed to leave the house. Lied about why i couldnt go in! Anyway, desperate to find a cure i googled it. I came across this site with the acetone tip. Strange i thought but willing to try anything. Well im absolutely amazed. Within 1/2 hr the ugly crusty yellow sore turned into a small red rough patch. Just like it looks when you've almost recovered from one. Its still swollen but its so much better. A miracle cure. Thanks Tipking   wow Comments By: Anon this is my first cold sore, and i am mortified right now. it is above my lip and is pea sized and hurts like a mo-fo. i just got over a nasty cold that was accompanied by a high fever, which is what i'm assuming triggered my outbreak. i've spent all day doing research on cold sores and nail polish remover seemed to have the most consistent testimonials. i finally worked up the nerve to try it and it immediately (within 30 seconds) took the swelling and puffiness down. i will continue to apply the npr every few minutes and am on my way to the store to get some lysine pills. i'll let you know tomorrow how it works out for me. so far it seems to be working. and p.s. my sore was open when i put 100% acetone npr on it and it really didn't sting that badly. don't be soft and just do it.   Just about to try Comments By: kelly HIya everyone, i have what has to be the biggest and uggliest coldsore between my lip and my nose. It isnt painful but is so huge, my lips are 3x the size they are meant to be. So i looked on here and i am just about to start putting on the nail polish remover and vodka. It is 0800 now so will update you later what it looks like....   ill try anything Comments By: boobzilla Ok Ok i 2 have a huge awful horrifying cold sore it is the size of a silver dollar i kid u not - my face is just on fire!!!! abreva is not doing a damn thing - so im leaving work in an hour and going home to do this nail polish thing - im vrey worried about it cus ive tried to cover one w polish itself and it just made it so much worse - but its me or it and i am determined to win!!!!   trying it Comments By: girl willl the nail polish remover work if the cold sore isnt popped?   NOT SURE YET... Comments By: Gem I have just felt the tingle and noticed the first of the bubbles. Ran to shop to get some acetone, I'm desperate for this to work. Will let you know how I get on.   PERFECT Comments By: Amanda Link omg i love it. it worked like a charm. my lips were already swollen. then i put the nail polish remover and the vodka it it smaller quickley. and i just continued to out it on there and there almost gone.   Tryin It Now!!! Comments By: Nakeya Well i dnt kno if its really workin but im tryin it... it burns like a mutha so im thinkin its workin... I bust mine first and squeezed everything out atleast all I could now im applyin da nail remover i hope it work i dnt want 2 go 2 work or school another day with dis... I will keep u posted!!!   OMG Comments By: Anon I have been getting cold sores since I was a kid..and just like everyone else i hate them and so embarassed whenever i get one. i tried Abreva once and it got bigger..no joke..the ice trick does work too..but for the first time last night i tried the nail polish remover..its like a miracle..u dont need a lot..just a little on a Qtip for a few minutes..and when i woke up this morning it was dry!   It works! Comments By: Mera Two days ago out of no where and without any tingle warning, I got my first cold sore in 6 years. Anyway, I went to the store and purchased campho phenique and then abreva the next morning. I was using both otc meds plus applying ice to it. It was extremely itchy and painful. So, after reading all the comments here,I decided to try the nail polish remover. I used it first around 11am and followed up with the abreva. I took a nap. After waking up around, I notice it had already reduced drastically. So, I applied the polish remover again. After looking in the mirror 30mins later, it was barely noticeable only slightly swollen. Here it is only 6 hrs since my first application of the remover and it's barely there. I am really thankful that this remedy works!   If only this worked permantantly Comments By: Anon life saver, my self esteem is so low atm, ive only slept with one girl, and i got this :L, stings a wee bit but thanks   just amazing !!!!!!!! Comments By: margaret i woke up with cold sore tingling this morning,,applied nail polish wipe to the sore about three times this morning,,and wow,,,,it gone it did sting for a second but i can't beleive it worked no more buying cold sore cream for me well done to the people on here for this remedy cheers,,,,,,   first cold sore ever Comments By: Britney So this is my first cold sore, I'm 32 and staying in the house until this is gone!! Went to the dr, got a prescription for 7 days and read about the nail polish remover/vodka. As soon as I got it I ran to get Abreva didn't see a different, then bought the lysine cream still nothing. It's day 4 and I'm ready for this to be gone! My boyfriend wants to see me haha So I tried the nail polish, stung a bit but it seems to be much dryer and removed all the wet scabs. Fingers crossed, I want to get back to my life!   Hmm Comments By: Hollyy It worked but nipped like hell!:( xx   swollen lip from nail polish remover Comments By: justin I came across this site after finding a small cold sore on my lip this morning. i did everything i read and after applying the nail polish with a cotton ball my lip got extremely swollen and im in worse condition now than before. Nail polish may work for some but not all. Be careful!   it seems to be working Comments By: krystal i think that it is working. i got a fever blister yeaterday after being outside to long and i just got a tiny blister but when i woke up this morning a had 4 big ones. well i applied the nail polish about 20 minutes ago and i think it is working   watching...hoping...waiting Comments By: ashley I get these things all the time! UGH, I swear it's a curse or something, personally I blame it on my father, he gets them as well. Back to the subject though, i've tried just about everything to clear these things up quickly. I woke up this morning with a pretty fair sized blister on my bottom lip, and it's none other than labor day weekend! Yay! Lucky me! lol... Right! I tried this polish remover and I'm not really sure how it works, but i put some on a cotton ball and held it to a pre popped blister. It does burn and I think u may want to cover your nose. The smell is awful! I actually walked outside to lighten it up. I'm going to keep putting it on hourly and hope this works! I'll update this blog tmrw, just to keep u posted.   Hoping it works Comments By: Susanna I havent had cold sores allll my life, but I do remember how I got my first one. It was on a long trip to Toronto and I picked up some coffee at the service center. Sadly, since that day I've had a friend who visits me four - eight times a year. I've tried everything. It was at a point where I'd carry abreva like I'd carry my keys with me. I saw this site and gave the nail polish trick a try. Lordy lord, the pain is unbearable..... but hopefully it works !!! Its been 10 mintues and my friend seems to be calming down. No acting up. Im going ot bed now, hopefully he leaves tomorrow! AND my liscense picture turns out great -_-'   Nail Polish Works Comments By: Anon It works on me. I always pop a couple of extra vitamins (multi) as well to help my immune system a bit. Some of these people seem to ignore the fact that you don't rub the stuff in, just put it on a cotton swab or cloth and gently dab some on the cold sore. DO NOT rub it hard, especially with your fingers, it will get infected with bacteria, and the cold sore virus will be the least of your worries. Be gentle and apply no more than 30 seconds to a minute ad a time 3 or 4 times a day, and it will dry up in less than a day most likely. If you go more than a minute you could possibly give yourself a chemical burn which is worse than the cold sore   Update on the hoping Comments By: Susanna Ok so heres what happened.... the next morning my cold sore was gone.. there was a small (manageable) scar on my lip. I twasn't too visible so my liscence picture turned out great. But almsot 5 days later I got ANOTEHR ONE !!! Except this time i noticed that i got two one on my per lip and on on my lower lip. I think the nail polish spread the virus around because ive never had then on my lower lip beforeeee   the REAL fix is antiviral pills Comments By: sorenomore seriously .. i keep a valtrex pill with me at all times in my purse to take as soon as i even THINK i might be getting a cold sore .... my gyn refills my prescription whenever it gets low ... if you take a pill AS SOON as you suspect one, the sore will either: never appear; or only be a tiny pinhead size which goes away fast ..... take one more pill the next day and you are finished with the pills for that outbreak (ie: the virus is finished, and all that's left is for the skin to heal)... i've also noticed that i have outbreaks MUCH less frequently since using this medication .... it's not cheap, but i only need 2 pills per outbreak and my outbreaks are less and less frequent ... there are also generics of zovirax ... ask your doctor and get this plague out of your life!!!   nail polish and lysine cream Comments By: keya friday moring i woke up with a cold sore on my bottom lip. that afternoon i ended up with two full blown cold sores. as soon as i got home i went online for cold sore remidies and found this site by reading all the positive comments i gave it a try and i say it working so far i applied nail polish remover to dry them up then i read that lysine lip cream was a very good source for cold sores too. so i ran up to walgreens to buy the lysine cream. now it saturday night and im glad to say is all i have left is a small scab on my lower lip. hopfully it would be gone by tuesday because i dont want to go to school with this scab on my lip!!!   new user Comments By: anon well i felt a coldsore coming on.... i really didn't have time or the money to buy anything so i looked online an saw to use nail polish remover.... at first i was like wth!.... but tried it.... an it burned but feels like its workin.... i can usually tell by lickin my lips but i dnt wanna cause nail polish remover is SSSooooo nastY!... i have hope   This is working pretty well!! Comments By: Larissa So, I've had this cold sore on my lip, not that bad, doesn't hurt that much but i've had it for about 3 or 4 days now, just waiting for it to go away. Well, school is tomorrow so i needed something to work fast, and so far the nail polish remover has made it shrink half in size! There's a bit of redness around the infection but i'm sure that will go away soon. (hopefully!)   hurts bad but working Comments By: Ryan It is painful but its working its been a long day just blew 17.99 on abreva when i could have bought this for a dollar   help! Comments By: ouuchh after i put nail polish remover on my cold sore, what do i so. it stings more than before and i can hardly talk and eat. i put nail polish remover on about four times. what should i do now? HELP!   I Dont Knoww Comments By: keikei im so scared mann i dont know if i should or not its a big chance what if something goes wrong pleaseeee help me