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Causes

The immediate cause of mouth ulcers is unknown, but factors that appear to provoke them include stress and illness, damage from rough teeth, and deficiencies in vitamin B12 and folic acid.

A common urban myth is that mouth ulcers are directly connected to the onset of the Herpes simplex virus, but in reality ulcers associated with herpes are of an entirely different nature from mouth ulcers. It is also said that excessive consumption of sweets is a cause of mouth ulcers - this is believed to be an old wives' tale. Other disorders can cause mouth ulcers, including oral thrush, leukoplakia, gingivostomatitis and oral lichen planus. Mouth ulcers are also associated with ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, coeliac disease (gluten sensitivity) and Behcet's disease. The treatment depends on the cause.

Home Treatment

Mouth ulcers normally heal without treatment within seven to ten days. The best start is to make sure you have good oral hygiene and avoid spicy/acidic/salty foods and drinks. In addition, one can treat the pain with several pain-relieving gels like Anbesol or Campho-Phenique available in drugstores. Some people claim that such gels also accelerate the healing of their sores.

Other home remedies vary in efficacy. Certain techiniques heal sores for some people, but there are no treatments with widespread medical support. Most seem to be based on an antiseptic (mild antibiotic), an antacid, or both. Antiseptic techniques suggested include the following: