i’m really prone to them and when i get one i rinse my mouth out with saltwater (with lotsss of salt in it)......usually its gone within a day. its a miracle.

I swear by this stuff…works very well for me and my kids. Kanka

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000GGKQGQ

I haven’t had one in a while, so I don’t remember the name of what I used, but you can get a product that’s a gel you put on top of the sore and it dries into a protective covering. That helps majorly in reducing pain and I would think it would speed healing, since the sore isn’t coming into contact with food or your gums/teeth/etc.

I use hydrogen peroxide. Just a little bit from a q-tip 2–3 times a day.

saltwater

I second Kanka! I get one every other month and it helps the pain. I also try to rinse my mouth with Listerine as often as possible, it helps speed up the recovery time. Haven’t tried saltwater yet though. I’ll give it a try next time.

I usually just suffer through ‘em, unless I’ve got a mouth full of the things. When it’s too much to take, I gargle with salt water and/or diluted hydrogen peroxide (you can gargle straight H2O2, but you will hate yourself afterwards). You can buy a topical anesthetic, too, like @Cruiser posted. Be warned that it wears off long before you can apply more.
One episode was so bad that for two weeks I could only drink warm salt water and eat things that could be swallowed without chewing; anything else and it felt like I was dumping razors into my mouth.

Anybody know a good preventative?

My mother told me to use powdered alum. Moisten a fingertip, get a little bit of alum powder on it, and apply it directly to the sore. Not a pleasant feeling or taste, but they did seem to heal faster. Don’t swallow until you’ve rinsed your mouth out.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aphthous_ulcer

@hiphiphopflipflapflop Thanks for the page. I be bookmarkin’ it now.

Lysine pills and Lysine ointment

Also, there are some medicated q-tips that are wonderful, but I don’t know what is in them.

Tea tree oil has helped dry some of my up faster.

Clove oil – recommended by a pharmacist

Kanka is good, too.

Swish very strong black tea in your mouth.