I used to get Canker sores (from as young as I remember to 32years of age)about every three weeks and they would last about 7-10 days. They usually started when I would bite my lip or cheek.

That was a year ago.

Now I only get the start of them every 8-12 weeks. Lets say I bite my cheek, I have that feeling and taste with my tounge that it will turn into a canker sore but it never does. I had tried everything under the sun that you could buy over the counter and nothing worked.

What I did is on OCT 4th last year I quite drinking soda. I know it sounds crazy but thats what I did and the cancer sores stopped. I am now using a natural tooth powder to brush (Eco Dent).

I think it was the carbonation that caused my cancer sores I drink a little coffee with Sugar and haven't had any problems with them.

Good luck

When I get any kind of obsess or canker sore, I take couple drops of oregano oil and swish it in my mouth for few minutes. It kills any kind of bacteria. I see incredible results next day.
If you don't like much stinging :-), you can try to spray Colloidal Silver .

I bite the sides of my cheek, my tongue, my lip, etc. plenty enough... never gotten a canker sore. I did drink soft drinks, formerly, but haven't for many years. Didn't get them even when I did drink them, though.
I thought they were caused by a virus in the bloodstream. Are canker sores different from cold sores? Because I'm pretty sure that cold sores are caused by herpes simplex, besides diet cleanup, one way people treat that is by taking lots of l-lysine.

I've had canker sores since I was a kid, around 7 yrs old, and now I have my own grown kids so you can imagine how long I've had to deal with them... Most of my canker sores last about a week, but some of them lasted a month and even longer, and in worst case they would multiply and I'd have a few of them in my mouth. Needless to say, I was VERY miserable.

Here are a few things I've learned from my own experience:

- Yes they do start as a result of a bite or similar, although I've had them appear wherever there's a pocket between teeth as well or near the tooth that's a little crooked.

- They are not virus related, although if I am under stress due to some virus or lack of sleep, they are very likely to appear.

- They are caused by candida. They are candida - no doubt. If I get a diarrhea while I have a sore, or if I cause a diarrea, I loose the sore not within a day, but within hours, or even minutes! It's not a virus or bacteria as I have no problems with my stomach. This is typical of candida. Also if I eat sweets, I get canker sores, especially if I eat el cheapo crappy sweets.

Here's what can be done:
Probably the first and most important thing would be to get rid of candida. The first time I ever got a canker sore as a kid was after a strong bronchitis which was treated with strong Antibiotics for a few weeks. After that I got sick as a kid quite a few more times, and seems that the stage for candida was set. Getting rid of candida takes about a year at least, and your husband's sores are a sign that he's got a systematic problem like I do. I am preparing myself for a good year of getting rid of it where a change in what I eat, taking loads of Una De Gato (explained later) a few times per day, and getting rid of my mercury fillings is the top of the list. Also there are excellent homeopathic remedies for candida.

If a sore appears, one thing that used to help me as a kid was to stop taking absolutely anything that has milk in it, even in minute amounts: chocolate, sweets, things that have food fillers in them (read packaging contents carefully), pizza, cakes, whipped cream, milk etc. This used to help in 99% of cases. As a matter of fact, it is good to avoid these foods even when there is no sore. One trick is that if you absolutely have to have that piece of cake for your kids b-day, at least take a whole lot of probiotics like acidophilus or bifidus (beter to be enteric coated or it doesn't help much). Those probiotics should/could theoretically convert all the milk Sugar (lactose) into lactic acid which candida doesn't dig. I've tried the trick and it worked.

If avoiding milk doesn't help, then avoid everything that promotes candida: sweets, sugars, fruits, especially stuff like cherries, grapes, and so on. I just ODed on grapes the other day and a few hours later I got a sore which still lasts as I type this.

If your husband has any mercury fillings, get rid of them, taking into account all the precautions and directions by authors of the book "It's all in your head". Mercury not only weakens and destroys everything in it's path including sensitive tissues in one's mouth, it also promotes candida by killing probiotics.

Every morning take a glass of water with quite a bit of lemon in it. It helps clear the candida.

Every evening good tooth brushing, for a longer period of time (more then 2 min).

Once a sore appears, if it is really persistent, you can brush your teeth a few times per day, and after each brushing pour some "Una De Gato" (Cat's Claw) on it - directly on the sore and it will hurt like hell; also put a few drops all over the mouth to keep it candida free over night. Then squeeze some oil from vitamin E capsule over it. Una de gato kills yeast on contact, is one of the strongest things available, is totaly natural, and Vitamin E helps healing. Quite a few times this regiment helped me get rid of a sore overnight.

Make sure fresh salads and fruits are WELL WASHED. I don't know what is the reason, but there is something there. I hear that aspirin is used a lot to protect vegetables and fruits, and that's a strong acid capable of causing ulcers and canker sores are ulcers... so my impression is that it is related. One thing that is curious: in the USA i get a lot more canker sores then when I am in Europe! Maybe they don't use aspirin in Europe to sprey their produce?

Hope this helps. But most importantly your husband should take canker sores as a warning that there is a bigger issue at stake: a systematic candida.