Herbal Remedies For A Sore Throat

Sore throats are extremely common in cold wintering months and they are often accompanied by other symptoms and signs of illness or serve as a symptom of the flu or a cold all on their own. Sore throats are never fun but there are some time tested herbal remedies out there that can make a big difference in not only how long your sore throat lasts but how badly it hurts as well. Since a sore throat often comes with other symptoms as part of a larger illness it can be helpful to turn to natural herbs and holistic remedies as most o these will get straight to work on taking care o the entire illness while also getting rid of the symptoms (like a sore throat) instead of having to take a bunch of different drugs for each problem you’re having. This makes it much easier to get over your illness faster and helps your body balance itself out without the use of any drugs that may be potentially harmful.

One of the first things to do with a sore throat is drink some hot water with some lemon in it. And by hot water you want fairly hot water, not warm or tepid - hot. Be careful not to burn yourself but it has to be warm and you want to add a good amount of lemon to it. The hot water and the lemon combined will help you get rid of any bacteria that are in your throat as well as any mucus and it can help your throat heal. It sounds counter productive but it’s like putting hot water on a sunburn, it gets the blood moving and helps the healing process begin. The lemon will soothe the burn a bit and it’s also antiviral so it will help you heal from whatever caused the sore throat. After you’ve done that you can make a nice tea out of lemon, apple cider vinegar, cayenne, and honey. You just want a teaspoon of each of these things and just a pinch of cayenne pepper in a cup of hot water. Stir well and you have a powerful and very old remedy for curing a sore throat. Another good tea to consider is one made from honeysuckle flowers. This is a very ancient chinese remedy and as such you can often find honeysuckle flowers in chinese herbal stores. You simply steep a cup of honeysuckle flowers (no leaves please) in hot water for ten minutes or so, strain, and drink. You can add a bit of honey if you like but honeysuckles are naturally sweet so you may not need to. Tea from marshmallow licorice, and slippery elm are also good ideas. Most herbal throat remedies that are sold today are made from slipper elm because it, as well as marshmallow, contains mucilage which is thought to coat the throat, soothe it, and reduce irritation. Licorice has similar benefits but it can be dangerous if you take too much of it so it’s a good idea to avoid using it in excess.

You can also use essential oils of these same herbs applied on a warm washcloth and then lay it on your neck. This is a great way to get the benefits of these herbs as well as the warm water without taking a whole bath but a bath is a very good idea as well. You can infuse a bath with these herbs by simply placing some of them in a muslim or cheesecloth bag and letting the hot water from the faucet run over them into the bath. This has the effect of steeping your herbs right in your bath and having the steam give you a cleansing effect as well.

There are plenty of at home remedies you can use to get rid of a sore throat so use some of the recipes above and see if you can’t get your sore throat to clear up in just a few days. If it continues or gets any worse you may want to go see your doctor to be sure that it’s not serious and remember to never give herbs to children before consulting with their pediatrician.