A new study on cold sores in Aotearoa found 80 percent of those afflicted by the common click to see more say it negatively impacts how they feel about themselves, with 30 percent of Kiwis avoiding dating due to it.

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From feelings of self-consciousness 58 percent to embarrassment 46 herpes and unattractiveness 41 percentthe study paints a picture of cold sore sufferers opting to hide away from their social lives. More than half 57 percent of the survey's participants confessed to altering their work or social arrangements due to the presence of the virus. The research found that among those affected, Gen Z individuals were the most significantly impacted, with over 80 percent adjusting their plans when confronted with a cold sore, and 60 percent avoiding social interactions entirely.

While the virus can be spread through saliva and skin-to-skin contact, dating hygiene practices dating limiting intimate physical contact will help to limit the spread.

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The survey found more than one in five Kiwis also don't realise a cold sore is a result of a virus 21 percent or that it is a condition that, while treatable, isn't something that can be completely cured 22 percent. Having a cold sore is absolutely not the end of the world," said Gardner.

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