Five Best Natural Home Remedies for Sore Throat
Are you feeling an irritation, scratchiness and pain in your
throat? Do these troubling sensations get worse when you swallow? If yes, you
are down with a sore throat. While it is always easy to go for a non-prescription
medication, you may also want to try out some natural home remedies for sore
throat.
A sore throat can really be irritating. It makes your feel
sick. You just don't feel like getting out of bed and doing your activities.
Furthermore, it also does not let you sleep if you just want to curl under your
blanket and get two winks. No wonder, at the first sign of that pain, people
tend to go for some or the other medication. However, in most cases you could easily
take care of a sore throat with the help of some home remedies.
Before we take a look at some natural home remedies for sore
throat, let's have a look at some of the causes of this health problem.
What are the causes of a sore throat?
Viral infections
It is most likely that you sore throat is due to a viral
infection. The most common viral infections include the common cold and
influenza (flu). Mumps, chicken pox, and mononucleosis ("mono" for
short) are some other viral infections that may give you a sore throat. In
children, croup is a condition that can lead to a sore throat. Croup is
characterized by a harsh, barking cough. If your voice box gets infected, it
means that you have laryngitis.
Bacterial Infections
While viral infections are the most common cause of a sore
throat, it is quite possible that you have a bacterial infection. Strep throat
is the most common bacterial infection. It is caused by a bacterium known as Streptococcus
pyogenes. Whooping cough and diphtheria are other likely bacterial causes
of your sore throat. Often, an inflammation of the tonsils is also bacterial in
nature. In some cases, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) such as chlamydia
and gonorrhea could be the cause of your sore throat. However, it is highly unlikely
unless you tend to engage in high-risk sexual behavior.
Allergies
If you are allergic to molds, dust, pollen, pet dander and
other such things in your environment, you are likely to get a sore throat
whenever you are exposed to these allergens.
Pollution
Constant exposure to air pollutants whether indoors or
outdoors is another reason for a sore throat. People who live in close vicinity
of a busy road or a smoke-chugging factory are likely to often get a sore
throat. Tobacco smoke is possibly the most common indoor air pollutant that can
lead to throat irritation.
Dryness in the air
Some people notice that they tend to get a sore throat in
dry season. This is why most people develop throat irritation in the winters.
Use of room heaters indoors in the winter season often dries the air and can
cause throat pain. For such people using a humidifier may help.
Breathing through the mouth
If you are in a habit of breathing through your mouth
especially while sleeping, you are likely to experience throat dryness. Often,
people with nasal congestion breathe through their mouths and this can dry the
throat.
Overstraining the vocal chords
If you have just been to a game where you were cheering your
favorite player or team way too loudly, you are likely to feel that pain in the
throat when you get back home!
Acid reflux
In some people, the acids and other content in the stomach
back up into the food pipe. These people often experience heartburn,
hoarseness, and a lump in the throat. This medical condition is known as
gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), acid reflux for short. If the contents
of your stomach back up into the food pipe too often, your throat is going to
be constantly irritated.
Other causes
Eating spicy foods, chewing tobacco, smoking, and drinking
alcohol may also be the cause of throat pain in some people. Sometimes, a sore
throat is the first symptom of an HIV infection as well. Cancer of the throat,
tongue or voice box may also be a likely cause of a sore throat.
So, now you know the likely causes of sore throat. Let us
have a look at some wonderful natural home remedies for sore throat now.
Top Five Natural Home Remedies for a Sore Throat
Apple Cider Vinegar
Turmeric
One of the lesser known natural home remedies for sore
throat is turmeric. An Indian spice, turmeric is known for its anti-bacterial
properties. The ideal thing to do is to add the turmeric to your salt water
mixture and gargle with it. For this, just add half-a-teaspoon turmeric and
half-a-teaspoon of salt to warm water. Gargle at least four times a day.
Another way of using this wonderful home remedy for throat
pain is to add half-a-teaspoon of turmeric to one cup of milk. The milk should
be boiled and then the turmeric should be added to it. Drink it at night before
going to bed and you will surely notice a difference in your throat irritation.
Cayenne Pepper
Gargling with cayenne pepper can help you get rid of throat
pain in no time. It may sting your tongue and throat a little, but it just
means that it is working its magic! Just add a little bit of cayenne pepper to
warm water and gargle with it. You can, of course, add it to the apple cider
vinegar tea mentioned above if you cannot handle gargling with it.
However, if you can handle it, do go ahead and gargle with
it. About four times a day will do the trick. If you cannot handle it, just boil
some tea leaves, add the cayenne pepper and some honey and sip it slowly.
Ginger
A very effective natural home remedy for sore throat is
ginger. Ginger has antibacterial properties which make it quite useful for
throat pain. Just peel the ginger root. Pound it or slice it. Boil about two
cups of water and add the ginger root to it. Let it boil for some time.
Ideally, you should allow it to reduce to about one to one-and-a-half cup. Take
it off the stove and add a little honey. A little bit of lemon juice added to
this tea would give you a good dose of vitamin C, which will help fight the
infection. If you cannot find fresh ginger root, you can always buy dried
ginger root powder.
Clove
Tips for Relieving a Sore Throat
Just using one or two of the above natural home remedies for
sore throat will be enough to bring relief. However, there are a few other
simple things that you should keep in mind when you are down with a throat
infection.
·
Get plenty of rest for a couple of days or at least till the
time you feel better.
·
Drink plenty of liquids, especially warm liquids since these
will promote healing. Warm liquids help in reducing the inflammation in the
throat and are soothing as well.
·
A Vitamin C tablet will boost your immunity and help get rid
of the sore throat quickly.
·
If dry air is a problem, consider using a humidifier in the
bedroom.
What to do if these natural home remedies for sore throat do
not work?
If these natural home remedies do not work, you may want to
consult a doctor. Make sure to consult a doctor
·
if your sore throat or hoarseness lasts for more than a
week,
·
if there is blood in the sputum,
·
if you have a temperature of more than 101 degrees Celsius,
·
if there is severe pain around the nose and the eyes,
·
if there is pus at the back of the throat,
·
if rashes appear.
You may also want to consider taking some homeopathic
medicines for relieving a sore throat. These are perfectly safe to use for
children, adults, as well as the elderly. Take a look at some of these
homeopathic medicines right here.
While these natural home remedies for sore throat are
generally quite effective, make sure not to use these if you are allergic to
any of the ingredients or if you notice that you throat pain is getting worse.
Of course, if it goes out of control, a visit to the doctor is the best thing
to do.
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© Copyright Roohi Khan, 2012
Good remedies thanks really work.......:-)
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