Home remedies to cure your sore throat

Many things can cause us to have a sore throat, and most of those things can be treated with home remedies. Sore throats are very common but usually are not serious and will get better without any treatment at all. Remember what your grandmother told you? She was right about so many things. There are ways to take charge of your health and treat your sore throat yourself.

Your throat is a moist, open space that shares openings and passages with your nose, your ears, and your sinuses as well as with the air and environment outside. Everything is connected.

If you have a runny nose from a common cold, allergies, sinusitis or even from the cold air outside, some of the phlegm can run down the back of your throat This is called post-nasal drip and it can irritate your throat and make it sore.

When your nose is blocked, you tend to breathe through your mouth, and the dry throat you experience from breathing with your mouth open can cause sore throat, especially if you’ve been snoring all night!

A cough from a viral illness, acid reflux or asthma can lead to throat irritation. Irritants in the air such as chemicals or pollen can result in a cough accompanied by a sore throat. Asthma inhalers can also cause sore throat if they stay at the back of your throat and are not inhaled down into the lungs.

People who smoke tend to have drier mouths and throats.

Sometimes, if you have earache, you can also get a sore throat as your ears and your throat share some of the same nerves. This is called referred pain, meaning that the pain starts in your ears and then moves to your throat along the nerves. The source of pain is not actually located in your throat, but your throat does feel sore. This can also work the other way where you have a sore throat, and you get earache from referred pain in your ears.

The most common causes of sore throat are viruses (like cold or flu), laryngitis, tonsillitis, and glandular fever. Only a small percentage of sore throats are caused by a bacterial infection and need antibiotics.

So, what are things you can do to improve your sore throat symptoms?

• Drink plenty of clear fluids. You’ll feel better in general if you’re well-hydrated. If you have a cold, the extra fluids thin down the secretions and make them easier for your body to break down. Your throat will be moist, not dry and sore. Try water or sugar-free squash or herbal teas.
• Steam inhalation will help to open all the passages connecting your throat to your nose, ears, and sinuses so it will be easier to breathe through your nose and avoid a dry throat. Try filling your sink with hot steamy water, add a few drops of eucalyptus or menthol oil, put a towel over your head and breathe in deeply for a few minutes. Be careful not to burn or scald your face. It shouldn’t feel uncomfortable!
• Saline nasal washes can also help to break up mucus in your nose, so it doesn’t irritate your throat. You can make up a solution of 3 teaspoons of salt with 1 teaspoon of baking soda and place this solution in an airtight container. When you want to use it, add one teaspoon of the mixture to 8 ounces of warm boiled water. Then, use a bulb syringe to squirt the water into one side of your nose and let it drain out the other side.
• Saltwater gargles help to relieve a sore throat. You can make your own gargle by dissolving half a teaspoon of salt in a large glass of warm water and gargling with it three to four times a day. If you don’t like the taste of the salt water, you can try drinking hot salty broth instead. Children should not gargle saltwater and can try sucking on ice cubes or ice lollies.
• If you have more of a sweet tooth, you can try a teaspoon of honey and lemon in tea or in hot water as a drink. Hot drinks can help to reduce inflammation and pain in the lining of your throat.
• A straight teaspoon of honey before bed can also help soothe a sore throat, as honey has a moisturising effect, and antiseptic properties.
• If you use asthma inhalers, try rinsing your mouth or gargling with plain water after you have used your inhaler.
• If you think you could have acid indigestion or reflux, then avoid large meals, spicy foods, alcohol and smoking. Sometimes, excess acid in the stomach can go up into your throat and make it sore, especially when you lie flat or when you are asleep at night. Please speak to your GP if you feel this could be the case.
• Now would be a good time to stop smoking!

If you have tried home remedies for a week and your sore throat has not improved, if you are worried about your symptoms, if you have a high temperature or shivering with your sore throat or if you have a weakened immune system or you frequently get sore throats, then please speak to a CheckUp Health GP soon so we can discuss your sore throat symptoms with you in more detail.

Download the CheckUp Health app now and book a video or audio call with a private GP, daytime or evening, 7 days/week.