Canker sores are commonly confused with cold sores, which are very similar in appearance. While they both look similar, the functions and anatomy of the canker sore is pretty different. Canker sores usually do not form on the surface of the lips, more often than not forming inside the mouth, under the tongue, at the base of the gums, or on the soft palate. In addition to this, they are not contagious. However, considering that they are relatively unsightly, you might want to do whatever you can to reduce the appearance and duration of your canker sores. Thankfully, there are some dietary changes you can make in your life.
Food & Nutrition Diet (Meal Plan) for Canker Sore
#1 Recommended Breakfast Diet for a Canker Sore
Typically, you will want to make sure that you are eating relatively bland foods that are easy to swallow. This will both minimize the discomfort of the canker sore, and it will minimize disturbance to the sore itself, both of which will make it easier to deal with the sore and improve the healing process. For breakfast foods, you might want to consider oatmeal, bagels with cream cheese, scrambled eggs, and yogurt. All of these foods are easy to swallow and they all have nutrients in them that will help your body out in the long run. For instance, eggs have iron, which has been shown to help with cold sores.
#2 Recommended Lunch Diet for a Canker Sore
Continuing with the bland diet, lunches can also consist of oatmeal and eggs. You can also add oysters, clams, and shrimp to your lunch. Not only will this add some degree of flavor, but it can also add iron. Iron is a mineral that your body needs and an increased intake of iron might be able to help you ward off recurring canker sores. More specifically, an iron deficiency can lead to increased canker sores, meaning that you are going to want to maintain an iron-rich diet, among other nutrients. Besides, adding some meat to your diet is always something that can help bring some taste to an otherwise bland diet.
#3 Recommended Dinner Diet for a Canker Sore
For dinner, it is going to be difficult to balance an iron-rich diet with bland, easy to swallow foods. For meats, you will want to look at wild-caught salmon, free-range chicken liver, and beef liver. These meats all have iron in them, aside from salmon. Salmon has more Vitamin B12, which has been shown to improve oral health. As for the vegetables, you will want to look at kidney beans, lima beans, navy beans, lentils, scallops, and spinach. These vegetables all have some nutrients in them that will help reduce the prominence and recurrence of canker sores. You can also add these foods to a soup, but you will need to be careful with this, as liquids hitting the canker sores can cause some pain and discomfort.
#4 Recommended Snack Diet for a Canker Sore
The snacks that help canker sores are going to be on the blander side of things, but this is to ensure that you are not disturbing the sore too much. Pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, and cheese are all snacks that you can consider. Another thing you should think about is that these snacks are pretty healthy, which is always a plus when you are looking for a new snack to add to your diet. If you want a little bit more flavor, you can consider some lightly salted versions of the pumpkin seeds, but too much salt is going to aggravate the canker sore.
#5 Recommended Drinks for a Canker Sore
You are going to want to be careful with drinks, as fluids touching the canker sore is going to be uncomfortable and can even cause a stinging pain. In this case, you can consider numbing the sore with ice, or using a straw to avoid the fluids touching the inside of your mouth. With that being said, you are going to want to look for cold fluids. This could be chilled juices (avoid citrus), water, iced tea, or milk. Again, this might be bland, but generally not having canker sores is better than not having the most flavorful diet.
#6 Recommended Herbs for a Canker Sore
There are some herbs that have been shown to help with the appearance and abundance of canker sores. For instance, parsley is an herb that is rich in both iron and folate, which combat the root causes of canker sores. Plus, after a meal, chewing on some parsley can freshen your breath. Because you will want to keep the food you eat bland, there are not many herbs that are good for canker sores besides parsley. However, you can also consider using that parsley to freshen up what you do eat. After all, when you have a bland diet, any sort of flavoring can make things significantly better.
#7 Recommended Fruits for a Canker Sore
Most of the nutrients for canker sores are found in meats and vegetables, meaning that most fruits are not going to do much for canker sores. The only fruit that has been shown to help with canker sores is the avocado. While most people do not think of avocados as a fruit, they are actually classified as a berry. Avocados have healthy fats, which are important for maintaining your body’s inner balance of nutrients. Whenever you want to heal any part of your body, you are going to want to make sure that you are getting everything you need, and this includes healthy fats.
#8 Recommended Vitamin/s for a Canker Sore
The best vitamin for relieving the symptoms of a canker sore is going to be B12. Vitamin B12, which is sometimes referred to as cobalamin, plays a major component in mental and physical health. Vitamin B12 has been linked to the body’s healing process, and having your canker sores go away in a more timelier manner is a part of that healing process. This means that you will definitely want to focus on Vitamin B12. More often than not, this is found in lamb, beef and beef liver, scallops, venison, chicken and eggs, and milk. When you are eating a bland, soft diet, scallops, liver, eggs, and milk are going to be your go-tos.
#9 Recommended Mineral/s for a Canker Sore
For minerals, you are going to want to keep an eye on your intake of zinc and iron. Iron is necessary for your body’s healing process, just as Vitamin B12 is. The same applies to zinc as well. This means that you are going to want to get more of these foods in your diet. Typically, zinc is found in oysters, beef and beef liver, cheese, seafood, yogurt, beans, sesame seeds, and pumpkin seeds. Iron, on the other hand, is found in chicken and chicken liver, oysters, clams, beef and beef liver, eggs, shrimp, beans, pumpkin seeds, and lentils. With a bland and easy to eat diet, you will want to look toward beans, eggs, seeds, and some seafoods.
#10 Discouraged Foods for a Canker Sore
There are some foods that you are going to want to stay far away from. Usually, these foods will aggravate the canker sore, potentially hindering the healing process. Hot foods, both in terms of temperature and spice, are foods that you will want to stay far away from. The same applies to acidic fruits, specifically tomatoes, pineapples, strawberries, grapefruits, lemons, and oranges. In fact, citrus can cause more canker sores, which is the opposite of what you want. You should also stay away from sodas and coffees, as these can both increase canker sores.
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