Home remedies for a sore throat

Synonyms

Cold, hoarseness, sore throat, throat pain

introduction

Patients should be advised to maintain adequate hydration levels and to allow themselves rest during the period of illness. In order to prevent such procrastination, sport should be avoided during this time. The ambient air should be humidified and alcohol and smoking should be avoided.

Gargling with salt water and drinking cold teas such as chamomile and sage tea should be repeated at regular intervals. Drinking hot lemon and sucking non-medicated sweets and neck wraps can also alleviate the symptoms, as can herbal substances (mucilaginosa) or sage throat spray.

The substance Echinazea is said to have immune system supporting effects (see also: Immune system). It can be taken by the patient both after the onset of the disease and for prevention.

You can find out how long a sore throat usually lasts in our article Duration of a sore throat - what is normal.

The most famous home remedies for a sore throat

The neck wrap

There are a variety of home remedies that can help patients of all ages Sore throat effectively alleviate. In this context, however, it must be noted that sore throats both in the course of bacterial, as well as viral infections can occur, so there are different ones causes.
If there is a bacterial infection that causes a severe sore throat, the use of home remedies may have to be carried out by a antibiotic therapy can be added.

At a Viral infection however, only the Symptoms be treated. In these cases, the various home remedies are often a good alternative to the use of potent medicines. Many people who suffer from recurring sore throats swear by so-called Neck wrap for relief of complaints. When using this home remedy, a cold neck wrap should be worn around the neck for a long period of time.
The cold neck wrap ensures that the warmth of the inflamed neck radiates. The heat is transferred to the neck wrap and can help to contain the inflammatory processes that lead to a sore throat. The application of a neck wrap is therefore a so-called Heat application.
Many of the affected patients swear by wearing the neck wrap overnight as a home remedy for a sore throat. In this way, it is able to relieve pain and effectively inhibit the inflammatory processes. To make the neck wrap, a simple linen cloth can be moistened with cold water, folded into a scarf and wrapped around the painful neck. A dry cloth and a warm woolen scarf should be worn directly over the neck wrap. The use of the neck wrap can be supplemented with other home remedies if necessary.

For some patients, for example, it helps to put cool quark on the neck wrap instead of cold water. The effect of this so-called Quark wraps corresponds to the operating principle of a conventional neck wrap. However, many of the affected patients report that the sore throat subsides significantly faster using a throat wrap coated with quark.

ginger

Sore throat are usually caused by inflammatory processes in the area of the Throat evoked.
For this reason, pain relievers that also have anti-inflammatory properties can help alleviate the symptoms. In addition to the known drugs (for example Ibuprofen) However, natural home remedies can also help to contain the inflammatory processes.
In this context, fresh ginger or ginger tea is one of the most popular home remedies Treating a sore throat. Ginger is considered a natural pain reliever and is very similar to the known analgesics in terms of the mechanism of action. The natural pain reliever, ginger, also works by inhibiting an important enzyme, cyclooxygenase.
This is an enzyme that plays a crucial role in the production of so-called inflammation mediators. As soon as the Cyclooxygenase is inhibited by the ingredients of ginger, the synthesis of pain-mediating messenger substances comes to a standstill. In addition, the spread of the inflammatory processes responsible for the sore throat can be contained in this way. Ginger, as a home remedy for a sore throat, has both analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects. Before actually using this home remedy, about two to three centimeters of fresh ginger root must be cut off, peeled and cut into small cubes.

Then the ginger cubes can be cooked in about one ¾ liters of water be heated. The resulting broth can if necessary with something honey can be sweetened and drunk as ginger tea. With regular use of this home remedy, the sore throat will usually decrease significantly within a few days. However, if the use of ginger as a home remedy does not show any effect within a week, a family doctor should be consulted. It may be a bacterial sore throat that is associated with a antibiotic need to be treated.

You can find out more about the topic here: ginger

honey

Another home remedy that can be used for upper respiratory infections and sore throats is commercial honey. Milk or tea enriched with a little honey has been an effective home remedy for treating sore throats since the Middle Ages.
The various ingredients in this home remedy have both an analgesic and anti-inflammatory effect.

Thanks to its anti-inflammatory properties, the home remedy honey can help both to relieve local swelling and to lower the increased temperature in the nasopharynx. Since most diseases that lead to severe sore throats lead to reversible damage to the mucous membrane in the area of the pharynx, the consumption of the home remedy honey can have a particularly calming effect. In addition, the active ingredient inhibin contained in the home remedy honey should be able to combat methicillin-resistant staphylococci and vancomycin-resistant enterococci.

You may also be interested in this topic: Home remedies for vocal cord inflammation

Onions

The onion has long been considered a particularly effective home remedy for a sore throat, Earache and other Cold symptoms.

A syrup made from honey and onions is a particularly potent home remedy. Both the onion and the honey have ingredients that have an anti-inflammatory and disinfectant effect at the same time. Due to this fact, the healing of colds associated with sore throats can be effectively supported by the syrup made from onion and honey.
Before using this home remedy, a large onion must be peeled and cut into fine cubes. Then the onion cubes can be enriched with a little honey. After a while, the honey begins to remove the cellular fluid from the onion. The resulting syrup is the onion-honey mixture that is considered a potent home remedy for sore throats.
After preparation, about one to two teaspoons of onion and honey syrup can be taken several times a day. The effectiveness of this home remedy for sore throats usually unfolds within a few hours.

You might also be interested in the following topic: Onions

Salt water

Gargling with salt water is found to be extremely uncomfortable by many patients. Nevertheless, this home remedy is considered to be particularly effective for relieving infection-related sore throats, provided it is used several times a day. The mechanism of action of this home remedy is based on the fact that viral pathogens in particular are attracted by the salt particles and can then be rinsed off the mucous membranes of the throat.
Before using the home remedy salt water, an effective rinsing solution must be prepared independently. Alternatively, special salt water solutions can be purchased in pharmacies and drug stores.

Read more on the topic: Gargling for a sore throat

In principle, any type of salt is suitable for producing the solution. However, coarse sea salt has proven particularly useful in treating sore throats. Affected patients should add about one to two teaspoons of the salt to a cup and then add lukewarm water. After about five to ten minutes, the ready-made salt water solution can be used. Salt water works with regular use (about three to four times a dayh) disinfecting. When using the salt water solution, however, it must be noted that severely irritated mucous membranes can cause a slight burning sensation.

Read more on the topic: Gargling with salt water - this is how it's done

Special features in toddlers

Special features when using home remedies in small children

Cough and Sore throat are among the most common complaints in childhood.
Especially in the cold months of the year, toddlers often have recurring sore throats that cannot always be treated with home remedies. In the affected child, the symptoms are usually caused by irritation of the nerves in the throat, larynx, windpipe or in the area of the large bronchi. Especially in toddlers, you can often see clear signs of inflammation when you look in the mouth.
The tissue of the throat in affected children usually appears swollen and red. In addition, purulent deposits can develop in pronounced cases. In general, sore throats can be caused by both bacterial and viral pathogens.

While some home remedies can help relieve a viral sore throat, antibiotic treatment is often needed for bacterial infections. In the case of a toddler, it is also important to ensure that the sore throat is not a sign of a more serious illness. If the toddler suddenly develops a severe sore throat and cough, diseases of the lungs (pneumonia; pneumonia) and the upper respiratory tract (e.g. croup) can be excluded.
However, the exact examination of the symptoms occurring in the toddler can help to differentiate a possible emergency situation from unproblematic sore throats, which can be alleviated by home remedies.

Parents who observe a barking cough with rapid, rattling breathing in their toddler should not rely on home remedies, but rather consult a pediatrician as soon as possible (for example in an emergency room or at the pediatric emergency service). The affected toddler could have a pseudo croup attack. Further signs of this "disease" are visible contraction of the muscles in the area of the collarbone and the chest. Pseudocroup is not so much an independent disease as it is a symptom. In the affected small child, in the course of an infection of the upper respiratory tract, inflammatory processes develop in the area of the mucous membrane of the larynx and the vocal cords. As a result, the diameter of the windpipe can be greatly reduced and shortness of breath can be caused. Infants and young children are particularly at risk.

For the parents of an affected toddler, it is important to know how to deal with a pseudo croup attack, which is often heralded by a sore throat and hoarseness. Although this is a potential emergency situation for the toddler, the affected person's parents should remain calm if possible. This is because stress and excitement accelerate the swelling of the airways.
In the event of a pseudo croup attack, a pediatrician should be consulted as soon as possible and a cortisone preparation should be used.On the way to the pediatrician, cold, moist air is considered a home remedy to alleviate the symptoms. In addition, asthmatic diseases, allergies or persistent heartburn can lead to a sore throat in toddlers. Suitable home remedies are warm drinks (preferably tea) and chamomile-based inhalation solutions. In addition, the sore throat in toddlers can often be alleviated by offering the person affected sufficient amounts of fluids.
However, since the sore throat is caused by irritation of the mucous membranes, sweet drinks should be avoided. These can burn in the throat and make the symptoms worse.

Special features when using home remedies when breastfeeding

Upper respiratory infections, which are accompanied by coughs and sore throats, can cause problems for many people, especially during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Both during pregnancy and during the subsequent breastfeeding period, many of the effective drugs must not be taken or only taken with a doctor's agreement. Although most of the common medicines for sore throats show no signs of a harmful effect on the child, an impairment cannot be ruled out beyond doubt.
It is precisely for this reason that many women depend on the use of home remedies for sore throats during pregnancy and the subsequent breastfeeding period.

But even with the known home remedies, it should be checked before use whether pregnancy or lactation is a contraindication. One of the most popular home remedies for treating sore throats during pregnancy and breastfeeding is neck wraps. These can be used with or without honey, depending on the severity of the symptoms. In addition, the home remedy "tea with honey" can be used without hesitation during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Please also read: Medication during breastfeeding