Through Suffering Comes Wisdom: Remedies for Sore Throats

***NOTE 1: I am not a doctor. I am not a licensed medical professional of any kind. I am not giving out professional medical advice. I am just giving some ideas on how to potentially help soothe sore throats based on personal experience. If you have or you feel like you have anything more than a common cold, go consult a real doctor!

***NOTE 2: I found links to all the actual products I use so if you want, you can check ’em out. But I am not doing any paid promotion of them or anything. I do not gain or lose anything if you buy them or if you don’t. Use your own judgement. Do what you want to do.

***Some of these products might cause allergic reactions for you, so research their ingridients and side effects before using them.

As Sophocles proved in his Oedipus cycle, through suffering comes wisdom. I.e. through having sore throat comes some insight into how to solve or at the very least soothe sore throats. And since I’ve been fighting one for the last couple of days, I figured I’d make my pain mean something and share my knowledge with the world. Without further ado, here are some easy remedies for sore throats, when you should use them (and when you should not).

1. Lozenges

Let’s start with the basic “My throat feels a little itchy and I have a light cough.” There isn’t any pain yet and it’s more so like a sore throat may be coming but it’s not there yet. Lozenges are excellent in this situation. And they taste good too (well, depending on the brand and flavor).

My personal favorite are Ricola Honey-Herb. Not gonna lie, I sometimes eat them like candy even when I don’t have a sore throat. Not saying you should though. Overindulgence in anything is not okay. You should know that lozenges do have diluted menthol, which overdosing on is extremely difficult but you never know. So, be smart about it. I may eat them even without a sore throat, but I eat ten or fifteen max in a day and I don’t touch them again for a while. Here’s a Healthline article that covers the effects of over-consuming cough drops: “Can You Overdose on Cough Drops?”

2. Oregano Oil & Honey in Water

My dad introduced me to Oregano oil when I was still in high school and I will forever be grateful. While it hasn’t kept me from getting sick altogether (because that’s not how life works), it has prevented my colds (common colds) from getting too bad.

Summer or winter, either before leaving home for the day or before settling down for bed, a couple times a week, I heat up a little bit of water (about 7 Tbsp., I just measured it) in the microwave then add half-a-dropper-full of Herb Pharm’s oregano oil from the 1 fl. oz. bottle and a little bit of honey (less than a tea spoon) and stir it up and drink it down.

A few things to note: you really shouldn’t have to have more than one or two round of oregano oil in a day. It’s not necessary. And you really, really shouldn’t have it without diluting it with water first. It will burn your lips, your throat, your stomach. Not a good idea.

Oregano oil’s got anti-bacterial, anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory and several other healthy properties. And while it doesn’t require a prescription, it shouldn’t be overused. It’s quite strong and overindulging in it might hurt the stomach or have other negative side effects.

The honey, meanwhile, is not mandatory but I use it because just the oregano oil itself is a bit bitter for me. If you’ve got a sore throat however, honey is an excellent addition to this mixture. Honey itself has some anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties. Depending on your own taste, go ahead an adjust the amount of honey as needed. Don’t pour in too much though. You don’t want the oregano oil to be overtaken by the honey. You also don’t want the mixture the be so thick you can’t drink it. If the honey stops dissolving, then stop pouring it in.

3. Rasam

There’s about a thousand different ways to make Rasam. Every Indian aunty who knows how to cook will give you a different recipe that they probably got from their mother. Or a cooking show.

My recipe is very, very simple. I will be uploading that in a separate post later today.

[Update: It’s later today and here’s the post: “My Recipe: Rasam“].

If your sore throat is so bad you can’t ingest anything unless it’s liquid, then go ahead and drink it. Pour it into a mug and drink it like tea. I did this last summer. Not only does it help sore throats, it’s delicious.

And if you can eat solids without crying, you can pour your rasam over rice. White rice, basmati, or jasmine are all great options.

4. Hot Tea

Speaking of tea…

Another excellent remedy for sore throats.

Not only is hot liquid a good idea, but many teas are made from various herbs that can have medicinal value.

I want to note that my favorite tea is masala chai. (Please don’t call it “chai tea”, you’re basically just saying “tea tea”.) And Wagh Bakhri is my favorite brand of masala chai.

And if you want to learn how to make Wagh Bakhri masala chai, check out my post “Masala Chai ka Methods“.

5. Gargle with Warm Salt Water

This one is easy.

Salt water acts as an anti-inflammatory agent.

No matter what stage of your sore throat you’re in, as many five times a day depending on how bad your sore throat is, fill a cup with some warm water from the tap, shake some salt in and gargle. Let me emphasize: Do NOT swallow! Gargle.

Note that too much gargling with salt water can cause dehydration. Also note that in order to prevent healthy cells from drying out, you should drink water, regular water, to balance out the salt-water gargling.

6. Tylenol

Let me emphasize that this is a last resort. Because, yes, Tylenol is an over-the-counter med, but it is a med. It is a drug. And you don’t want to abuse it. Or, at least, I hope you don’t.

Let me also emphasize that unlike the other items on this list, Tylenol doesn’t particularly subside the sore throat itself but instead acts as a pain reliever so that your sore throat doesn’t hurt as much.

Whether you want to take it in the morning after you get out of bed or at night before bed is up to you but be consistent. If the former, definitely get a non-drowsy version unless you plan on spending the whole day in bed. And do NOT, I repeat do NOT fucking drive if you take a drowsy med!

One Tylenol dose for twenty-four hours should be more than sufficient. And if you find yourself needing Tylenol more than two days in a row because your sore throat is that painful, go see a doctor. You might have strep or something.

If you’re an adult, chances are you’re going to find Tylenol in pill form but they do make adult Tylenol in liquid form just as they do for kids.

If you are going to use Tylenol (or any other med ever), please thoroughly read the instructions and drug facts on the label.