Sore Throat Remedy

It is always useful to know a good sore throat remedy, since a real sore throat can be horrible painful causing great discomfort, feeling of burning and scratching. It makes hard to talk or swallow.
Sore throat may be the first sign of

caused by an infection of viruses or bacterium.
Soreness brought on by viruses usually develops gradually, with little or no fever. (Viruses do not respond to antibiotics, it has no sense taking antibiotics.) But a bacterial infection like strep throat (caused by Streptococcus infection) often comes on suddenly with high fever. Tonsils are red, swollen, spotted with white or yellow dots. (Antibiotics are indicated.)

sore throat anatomy

Throat irritation from

The best way to cure a real sore throat in adults is using a gargle. Children are not able to gargle, so a throat compress or a homeopathic medicine is a better sore throat remedy for them.

Read about Throat Compresses for Sore and Strep Throat

If you do not see improvement from home remedies overnight, please visit your doctor, especially if you suspect strep throat. A real strep throat may have severe complications like inflammation of the kidneys or heart or joints.

GARGLES

Using gargles should bring improvement immediately, latest in one or two hours.

There are loads of gargle recipes, but they have a few common ingredients like:

Cayenne Pepper
Lemon
Vinegar
Sea salt
Honey

May be the most effective sore throat remedy is using Cayenne Pepper for a

Hot and Spicy Gargle:

The most amazing and effective treatment is using 5 shakes of Cayenne Pepper (Capsicum frutescens) Powder in a cup of hot water (or herbal tea or saline solution or lemon juice) and gargle every 15 minutes with the spicy elixir. May swallow each time a tiny bit. Gargling with cayenne can cause a strong burning sensation of lips and tongue. Therefore is good keeping milk or yogurt in your mouth after gargling until the burning disappears.
If you do not have Cayenne pepper use 10-20 drops of Tabasco sauce in a glass of warm water, the effect will be the same.
If you do not have access to Cayenne or Tabasco, chili peppers, hot paprika or white pepper are similarly useful. All this pungent spices contain capsaicin, which dulls the pain and has anti-viral properties.
Ginger (Zingiber officinalis) tea is also a good choice. Simmer 10g grated fresh ginger root or ginger powder in a cup of water for ten minutes. Strain and give optionally fresh lemon juice and/or honey and/or a pinch of Cayenne pepper. Use as a gargle every 30 minutes.

CAUTION: Cayenne pepper is a natural blood thinner, do not take it before surgery or dental treatment!

If you can not stand hot stuff, Vinegar or other acidic substances (like lemon) are nearly as effective as pungent gargles. The strong acidic pH kills germs, so it is a good sore throat remedy.

Acidic Gargle:

Hot VINEGAR like: Apple Cider Vinegar or Pickle Juice (brine from a jar of pickles) bring immediate relief and soothe within the first few sips. They are really great remedies! Add 2 tbs of Apple Cider Vinegar to a cup of hot water and gargle and drink it as hot as possible. Or heat up the pickle juice, like hot tea, sip it and/or gargle.

The traditional way is using fresh lemon for sore throat, just suck on a lemon or gargle with freshly pressed lemon juice diluted with an equal amount of warm water. You may eat freshly squeezed lime juice mixed with equal amount of honey. In my practice I found vinegar more effective then lemon.

CAUTION: vinegar and lemon are strong acidic substances and can damage teeth enamel. Please rinse your mouth with water, after gargling.
Lemon juice dries up the throat, don't use it, if you have a dry throat irritation.

Sometimes the germs in your throat are acid-resistant and the infection does not improve from vinegar. You may use a strong alkaline solution to kill viruses and bacteriums, since they are rarely alkaline-resistant.

Alkaline Gargle:

Using Potassium Carbonate or if you don't have it, Sodium Bicarbonate (baking soda) solution will bring amelioration. Add 1/2 teaspoon of Potassium Carbonate (or baking soda) to a glass of warm water. Gargle every 30 minutes.

The most common sore throat remedy is the old fashioned salt water gargle, but I suggest giving additional ingredients (e.g. cayenne pepper or crushed garlic) to the basic saline solution. It is a mild antiseptic and draws water out of mucus membranes, so it reduces swelling and helps to clear phlegm.

Salty Gargle:

The concentration of the saline solution may vary, depending on the seriousness of the inflammation. You can add 1/2-1 teaspoon of sea salt to 125ml hot water (should taste like sea water) and gargle every hour if it helps. (Spit out the salt water anyway!)

Caution: a strong saline solution dries up your throat, do not use it for dry throat irritation.

If you prefer herbs, you can make a strong herbal tea and give some honey, lemon and a pinch of Cayenne pepper in it and use as a gargle.

Herbal Gargle:

The best sore throat remedy is Slippery elm (Ulmus rubra) bark or Marshmallow (Althaea officinalis) root. They contain mucilage that coat the throat, ease soreness and calm inflammation. To make a tea, mix 2 teaspoons of the dried root or bark in two cups of water, bring to boil and simmer gently for 10-15 minutes, strain and gargle/drink every hour.

A traditional recipe is to simmer 1 teaspoon marshmallow root and 1 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger root in 250 ml water for 10 minutes in a covered pot. Remove from the heat, cover and steep for additional 10 minutes. Strain, add honey and/or lemon and/or 1/2 teaspoon of salt and gargle every 30 minutes if helps.

You may combine different substances in one gargle, to make it even more effective!

Homeopathic Remedies

I want to share a very-very effective and well-proved remedy combination for the beginning of a strep throat or a really severe sore sore throat globuli throat.
Take alternately every 2-3 hours

Hepar sulphuris C12 and
Belladonna C30

3-3 pills dissolving under your tongue for 1 day. (Do not eat 5 minutes before and after taking the sore throat remedy.) Stop taking the next day if it does not help, and visit a homeopath or doctor. If you notice marked improvement take the remedies 3 days more but less frequent.

Read about the Treatment of Strep Throat

Increasingly popular Wild Oregano (Origanum vulgare) Essential Oil is a very effective sore throat remedy. Soak a cotton swab in oil of Oregano and dab it directly on the inflamed area. You may gargle with 2-3 drops of Oregano oil in some hot water as well. Your sore throat will be gone in less then an hour.

sore throat origanum

Massage

Besides using gargles a fine, oil external throat massage can speed up the healing process. Add 2 drops each of Thyme (Thymus vulgaris), Sandalwood (Santalum album) and Myrrh (Commiphora molmol) essential oils to 1 tbsp of olive oil and massage the external neck area. Wrap a warm scarf around the neck afterwards.

Lozenges or Linctus

Do not forget our good old Garlic, which has an excellent antiseptic effect and has the power to cure both viral and bacterial sore throat. At the first sign of a sore throat, place one clove of garlic in your mouth between your cheeks and teeth and keep it for a while. Repeat it several times a day.

If you like garlic, you can eat two raw cloves each day without anything or chop finely and add to hot soup just before serving.

Another possibility is to crush one clove of raw garlic and add 2 teaspoons of honey and fresh squeezed lemon juice. Take from the mixture 1 teaspoon several times a day.

A lovely old folk remedy is Baked Lemon with Olive Oil.
Take one lemon and poke some holes with a fork, put it in the oven (150-170C) and bake it until juice bubbles out the holes. Cool and squeeze the lemon put the juice in a jar and add equal amount of olive oil and some honey. Shake well! Take a small spoonful now and again.

A very nice old home remedy is Layered Onion with Honey.
Layer slices of onion or turnip with honey (or sugar) in a dish and leave overnight. Next morning pour off the liquid in a jar and take it sometimes as a lozenge for sore throat. (It is an excellent cough syrup as well)

Diet tips:

Avoid cow's milk products, sugar and refined wheat foods, since t sore throat pineapple hey promote mucus formation.

Drink a lot of fresh Pineapple Juice, may be hot. You can even gargle the juice before swallowing.
Drink plenty of Citrus Juices diluted with water. Mix a cup of hot water with a spoonful of honey and with the juice of half a lemon. Drink it several times a day.
Drink 4-6 glasses of water each day.

Some other tips:
Run a cool-mist vapouriser or humidifier in your bedroom. Adding moisture to the air will help to prevent the lining of your throat from becoming too dry.
If you are plagued with a recurrent sore throat, by a new toothbrush. Bacteria collect on the bristles and if you injure your gums as you brush, they can enter your system and re-infect you.

Don't miss the details of Sore and Strep Throat Treatment:

Sore and Strep Throat Compress
Especially for children a sore throat compress is often very useful. Usually after one or two treatments the sore throat has gone.