What Causes Canker Sore (Mouth Ulcer)?

A canker sore is not a dangerous condition. It is a sore that has taken place in your mouth. Rather it is an open sore. They come up anywhere in your mouth, that is they come up on your tongue, or on your cheek and lips or on the gums of your teeth or on the soft skin in the mouth.

Canker sores do not have any limitations to age, but they are more often found in people within the age range of ten years to forty years. They can affect anybody at any age irrespective of gender. However they affect more women than men.

Canker sores are also known as aphthous ulcers or Ulcers – Aphthous.

Symptoms of a Canker Sore
Canker sores come up as a bump in the mouth. This later develops into a pain that is irritating. The initial signs are a tingling sensation or a burning sensation that later turns into a sore. The inner core of the sore is a white or yellow in color with the outer periphery a red in color. The size of the sore may vary from person to person and from sore to sore. This sore generally develops in the family and is considered to be hereditary. The sores develop after some dental procedures or due to aggressive brushing of the teeth.

What does a Canker Sore look like?
The canker sore appears as any normal ulcer. The ulcer is white in color with a ring of red. The white may be also a yellow due to the formation of pus in the core of the ulcer. The size of this ulcer is generally small but ulcers of over one centimeter in diameter may also appear. Ulcers of over one centimeter in diameter take longer to heal than normal ulcers.

Difference between a Canker Sore and a Cold Sore
Canker sores can only take place inside your mouth. The cold sore can take place outside your mouth. Cankers sores are also not contagious, whereas cold sores are contagious. Cold sores are caused by the herpes virus. Canker’s sores are believed to be hereditary and initiate in your mouth with either a dental procedure or as a result of hard brushing, which damages the soft tissues of your mouth.

What Causes Canker Sores?
Though the exact causes of Canker’s sores are unknown, it is believed that the sores are caused due to either a dental procedure or results from aggressive cleaning of the mouth. Canker’s sores are considered to be hereditary as this generally runs in the family.

It can also take place due to a bite of the cheek or the tongue accidentally while chewing. Some studies have pointed out that canker’s sores are caused due to vitamin deficiency or iron deficiency.

Emotional stress can also trigger Canker’s sores.

Can Canker Sores be treated?
No treatment is required for Canker’s sores. They are self treated. They come up in your mouth and they recede after a few days. Bigger sores last for about tow or three weeks.
An effective canker sore remedy for relieving the pain is using a salt water solution. You just mix 1 teaspoon of salt with 1 cup of warm water. Swish the solution in your mouth for 30 seconds, and then spit the solution out. In addition to salt, half a teaspoon of baking soda may be added to the saline solution. Using this paste-like substance, cover the canker sore, this will help relieve the pain.