…for cold sores! Little tiny white bump on the tongue, smaller than the head of a pin, hurts like blazes, and I am plagued with them ,it seems ,constantly. Is there some natural remedy, like brewers yeast or a vitamin that works? (The doctor says, oh, they’ll go away by themselves. Duh, like he cares.)
I don’t know about a natural remedy (or even what you mean by that) but I have used something called Kank-A (OTC) and it works great. Stings for a second but after that the spot goes totally numb.
The active ingredient is benzocaine which is a popular local anesthetic, so look for anything with benzocaine.
These are actually apthous ulcers, more popularly known as canker sores. My husband gets them something awful. Here’s a good page from About.com with a whole listing of links to more info. There’s even a new prescription medicine you can try if they really bother you:
http://dentistry.about.com/cs/cankersores/index.htm?iam=dpile&terms=canker+sores
hrmmm…thats always intersting to find out… I always thought those little things were inflamed taste buds…
i get them too, but they just go away after a week or so. And mine don;t hurt that much, but then again i could be thinking of something differant
You could put Anbesol on it to stop it from hurting while you’re waiting for it to go away. I don’t know if that’s “natural” enough for you though.
There is a previous thread that I found very helpful. The links are very good and the advice is sound.
deb
Thanks for all the information. I only asked about “natural” remedies because I once heard about miraculous results from some vitamin or potion, but can’t remember what it was.
salinqmind, let us know what you find in that dept & if it works.
My mom swears by l-lysene, a supplement she takes daily. She can’t even look at orange juice without getting a canker sore, but when she takes the l-lysene regularly, she can have citrus in moderation and not be bothered by canker sores.
I used to get them all the time, then when I moved to CA and practically existed on tangelos and oranges, I got them really badly for a few weeks, then they stopped. I don’t think I’ve had one since. So maybe the secret is to od on citrus? 
I originally said I had a cold sore on the tongue, but it is a canker sore, not a cold sore. I looked through some old Prevention magazines and found out that the mystery remedy is a cold wet teabag. I have my doubts! Anbesol is as good as anything until it goes away, though if not totally broke before Thanksgiving will try out something else just for canker sores.
Another suggestion: use listerine after you eat, every time. It seems to make them go away faster and hurt slightly less. Same thing for if you get a cut on the inside of your cheek (whenever I bite the inside of my mouth by accident, it turns into a canker sore).
As for those inflammed taste buds? Cut them off. You heard me. Go buy a pair of cuticle scissors (they’re with all the makeup and nail stuff at the drug store) and use them to snip the sucker off. Taste buds must have strange mutant nerve systems, because as soon as it’s gone, it doesn’t hurt anymore, regardless of the fact that you just completely severed a taste bud. I swear it works, but of course, can’t assure you that it is perfectly safe. 
Tea bags work wonders–supposedly the tannic acid. I imagine they’re easier to use on the sores on the inside of your cheeks than those on your tongue, however.
My mom calls these lie bumps. I haven’t had any in a while, but, I don’t remember treating them w/ meds. I just had to make a concious effort not to irritate them more by biting on them!!
Hope they go away soon, because I know they are very irritating!!
-----I always thought those little things were inflamed taste buds…-----
LOL!!! [laugh]
And no, they are not cold sores, those herpe viruses prefer your lips. They are a similar form of herpes that show up in the unmentionable area.
No bugs, just an ulcer.