Through research and trials, we’ve developed a clear understanding of the numerous positive effects Herstat has in relieving the symptoms of cold sores (or, as they are also known, fever blisters). Focused studies on the benefits of Herstat offer positive supporting data about the type of relief of symptoms you can expect by using our lip protectant.
How Herstat compares to other products
Data from major published studies on other products show that many of them help to heal cold sores about half a day to one day faster than a placebo or without any treatment.
The most recent study published on Herstat showed that it sped up healing so successfully that people involved in the trial were rid of symptoms an average of 3.5 days faster than if they had been treated using the placebo.
Herstat's participants, on average, were completely free of all symptoms at day six of the study. Without treatment, fever blisters will typically take ten to twelve days to heal.
More information about this trial
This trial was double-blind, meaning that the participants – and the individuals dispensing the product to be used during the clinical study – were not aware of whether they were handling Herstat ointment or the placebo.
This is a well-known study design used to eliminate any intentional or unintentional bias which might affect the results of a study.
Sixty-eight people were used in the trial: thirty-five were randomly given a placebo and thirty-three were provided with Herstat.
Participants were asked to apply their product five times daily and fill out a cold sore research diary in which they could note down the stage their symptoms had reached, as well as how much pain they were experiencing.
Using this information, the time to healing was monitored, as well as time to loss of pain. On average, all individuals using Herstat had normal skin within 6.24 days and reported being pain free by day seven. These results support the benefits of Herstat, suggesting that by providing a protective barrier around the sore and as such a conducive environment for healing that symptoms were alleviated a lot faster.
In contrast, those using the placebo had to wait 9.77 days before their skin returned to normal, whilst 22.9% of them were still complaining of pain on day seven.
What did participants think of the product?
Before it was revealed to them whether they had been using Herstat ointment or the placebo, those involved in the study were asked for their opinion of the treatment. Their responses give a glowing evaluation of Herstat's power and show how successful it is in the relief of the symptoms of fever blisters.
Those who had been using Herstat's Lip Care Ointment were happy with the results; 18.2% stated it was "somewhat effective", whilst 81.8% stated it was "very effective".
In the placebo group, however, only 5.7% said that the product they used was "very effective", 11.4% said it was "somewhat effective", and the remainder thought the placebo was either "hardly effective" or "ineffective".
When asked whether they would use the product again, 93.9% of the people who had been using Herstat during the trial said "yes". In comparison, the reverse was true for the placebo group, as 94.3% said they would not use the product they had been using again.
Considering the prevalence of fever blisters among the global population, the above responses should be extremely encouraging to cold sore sufferers everywhere.
Success in earlier trials
Another earlier study conducted by Dr Zenon Sosnowski, whose research was responsible for the development of Herstat, showed similar positive results. This was another double-blind study that separated participants into a Herstat group and a placebo group. The results showed that the Herstat group saw a drastic drop in healing time of their lesions. The mean healing time for the Herstat group's previous fever blister outbreaks was 10.9 days, which was cut to just 4.1 days when using Herstat. Meanwhile, the placebo group experienced only a slightly shorter healing time on average, dropping from a mean of 9.8 days to 8.4 days.
Try Herstat, for easing your cold sore symptoms
If you would like to see and feel the results for yourself, we have two products available.
Firstly there is Herstat Lip Care Ointment, which is a lip protectant and helps to relieve the symptoms of cold sores. It also helps to minimize and prevent dry skin, cracked and sore lips.
The second product is our Herstat Lip Care Stick, which you can use in between outbreaks for everyday lip protection – and is also great for defending yourself against UVA / UVB as well as avoiding dry or chapped lips.
