Which essential oils against a cold sore or cold sores?

From 6 years old. Dermal, place 1 drop of pure Niaouli essential oil on the affected area. Apply every 2 hours, until the herpes disappears.

From 3 years old and for reactive skin. Dermal, prepare a 20% mixture (60 drops of Niaouli essential oil in 8 mL of vegetable oil). Apply 1 to 2 drops of the mixture to the affected area, every 2 hours, until the herpes disappears.

More details : how to use Niaouli correctly?

Niaouli essential oil is the one that is most often recommended to relieve herpes. Even if there is no clinical study yet to validate this reputation, several of its components do indeed have complementary properties consistent with use in this indication. 1,8-cineole, the majority in Niaouli (45 to 65%), is in virucidal effect. Associated with α-terpineol, another component of Niaouli, 1,8-cineole also has the ability to penetrate the membrane of the virus and prevent its multiplication.

In addition, the Niaouli has anti-inflammatory properties thanks to its content of sesquiterpenes such as β-carophyllene which will act in synergy with eucalyptol and α-terpineol. Finally, nerolidol (5 to 10% in Niaouli essential oil) is a sesquiterpene alcohol with properties healing, capable of acting even at low doses.

Known for its broad-spectrum anti-infectious properties,tea Tree essential oil (or Tea Tree) would be active on the herpes virus HSV-1 by a predominantly virucidal action. A 2010 study notably made it possible to make the link between this property and the presence of alpha-pinene and alpha-terpineol. We also find in Tea Tree essential oil a high concentration of terpinen-4-ol (between 30 and 50%), a monoterpenol that is both very antiviral, but also anti-inflammatory.

All these properties make it another essential oil of choice against herpes. If used alone, it is recommended to apply it as soon as the warning signs of a herpes outbreak appear.

The wealth oftrue Lavender essential oil in linalool and linalyl acetate gives it analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties particularly sought after in cases of herpes. As cold sore outbreaks are most often very painful, Lavender will then complement the antiviral activity of the other essential oils in the mixture. In addition, True Lavender essential oil is skin regenerative. Hence its interest throughout the herpes outbreak until the healing phase.

These are finally his calming and sedative properties which will be appreciated in olfaction, especially when herpes is favored by stress.

• Lravintsara essential oil. Like Niaouli, Ravintsara essential oil is particularly rich in 1,8-cineole (50 to 60%), a molecule with antiviral properties validated by scientific studies on several viruses including herpes HSV-1. The particularity of 1,8-cineole is that it acts as a virucidal, but also as an inhibitor of the intracellular replication phase. Ravintsara essential oil also contains alpha-terpineol (5 to 11%), a monoterpenol which is also present in Niaouli and has been the subject of studies on its antiviral power.
  Considering all these similarities between Niaouli and Ravintsara, we can consider that they are interchangeable in case of cold sores. Niaouli being not recommended for people with a hormone-dependent pathology, it is therefore possible to replace it with Ravintsara in the synergy proposed above.
  
  
• Chamomile essential oil. According to a scientific journal published in 2021, Chamomile essential oil is particularly effective in cases of cold sores. The information is still insufficient to propose an appropriate mode of use, but we already know that it is virucidal and inhibits intracellular processes of replication and diffusion, with a significant specificity against HSV-1 virus. This is very promising information in this area.