The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.
Vinegar
Posted by Kaila (Springdale, Arkansas) on 07/13/2008
★★★★★
Welll i try salt and vinigar with hot water to gargle. It might taste odd but it helps alot. Use five teaspoons of salt and a half cup a vinigar. but it does not matter how much water you use! Hope it helps.
Vinegar
Posted by Ryan Preston (Leicester, England, UK) on 11/09/2007
★★★★★
I can't really give much of a different song here, but what I done to cure my unbearable sore throat and runny nose (I'm still doing it) is by mixing up a concoction of malt vinegar (ACV is hard to get here), honey, lemon juice and water. That, within the last 10 mins of commencing this note has soothed my throat a lot. Now, to cure the runny noise, I made myself hot tea (NO MILK) and added honey and lemon juice, I mixed, then drank whilst it was hot. The runny nose problem is virtually abundant. And the sore throat should be, too. So... hot water, lemon juice, vinegar and honey do the trick!
Vinegar
Posted by Patricia (Port Dover, canada) on 08/02/2007
★★★★★
I JUST SHOT A MOUTHFUL OF MALT VINEGAR INTO MY MOUTH FROM THE BOTTLE AND VOILA THE PAIN IS NEARLY GONE.. I READ SOMEWHERE YEARS AGO THAT IT GOES AFTER THE BACTERIA IN THE INFECTION..NOT SURE IF THATS TRUE BUT IT WORKED LIKE A CHARM!! give it a try..and vinegar really!! the first ten seconds are pretty intense but it is worth it.
Vinegar
Posted by George (Seattle, WA) on 04/03/2007
★★★★★
white vinegar, water, crushed vitamin c, and salt instantly relieved the pain of my sore throat.
Vinegar and Water Compress
Posted by Jane (Fordingbridge, England) on 01/15/2015
★★★★★
For a sore throat, I have often used a vinegar and water compress pinned around my neck and covered carefully with dry towel, left on all night. Since the body is known to be electric, it is obvious that the acid in the vinegar could assist with re-establishing normality.
Vinegar, Salt, Pepper
Posted by Elizabeth (Orangeville, Canada) on 11/30/2007
★★★★★
I mix salt, black pepper and vinegar together. The salt helps to dry up phlegm, the black pepper appears to cling to lose phlegm and pulls it out and the vinegar appears to kill the germs. Mix together in a strength you can handle (you can mix in warm water if vinegar is too strong) and gargle about a half a cup for the first time then again before bed or if throat bothers you during the day. It's a very old remedy my mom used on me as a child.
Vitamin C
Posted by Lim (Singapore) on 05/26/2012
★★★★★
The simple cure that worked for me is as follows:- Just break up a Vitamin C tablet into smaller pieces and put one small piece on the tongue. Slowly suck it like a sweet. You will feel relief. Repeat that periodically when necessary. After a few times, your throat would not be painful anymore.
Water
Posted by Anonymous (USA) on 04/20/2006
★★★★★
Water! It helps keep your throat moist. Keep water at your bedside for when you wake up and whenever your throat is feeling dry, drink water.
Whiskey
Posted by Kate (Toronto, Ontario) on 12/04/2008
★★★★★
The best remedy I know for sore throat is Drambuie. It's a Scottish liquer made with malt whiskey and spiced honey, and is 40%. Other similarly strong alcohols might help, but I have never tried them. Weak alcoholic drinks do NOT work.
Just one small sip always provides immediate relief for myself and all my family. If the liquid doesn't seem to touch the particular spot in your throat, I like to gargle just a little bit. I know it sounds gross, and please remember this is a liquer, so you only want a sip and not a whole mouthful.
If the sore throat comes back, two or three more sips throughout the day might be necessary. I have never had to use it more often than this.
Of course I don't think I need to mention that this isn't for kids as the taste is very strong and could upset sensitive stomachs.
Also, just a warning, that a 375ml bottle here in Canada will cost you about $25. This bottle will however last you a VERY long time. If you don't want to fork out that much, there are always small sample size bottles available too.
Honestly though, this has worked in my family for the past 20 years at least.
Whiskey
Posted by Fred (MB, South Carolina) on 02/14/2007
★★★★★
I first tried the hot water with Cayenne Pepper,and to no avail it did not work as expected it did however excite other sensory cells in which resulted in desensitizing the sore throat,I then moved to Cayenne Pepper in Apple Cider Vinegar,in which again failed. So I thought I would try the lemon in which did seem to help a small amount,I tried the Pineapple Juice in which seemed to have subsided the pain much better. I also tried using salt in hot water for several days,in which resulted little to no change. There are two types of sore throats one that is Bacterial,and the other is Viral,while Bacterial can often bee cured by antibiotics,Viral sore throats cannot be,and often require a running of its course,it is important to note that Viral sore throats are caused by the bodies immune system during its war, your anti bodies essentially destroy the cold virus via chemical acid,by spraying acid onto the cold virus it also destroys healthy cells in its process,burning the lining in the throat,that is why vitamin c is important in fighting a cold,because the acidity level needs to be high to fight off the cold virus. however a sudden change in your acid levels in your throat can actually irritate the sore throat and make it worse,such as a sudden use of a Zinc supplement. While some success has been met using salt in a hot water mixture,this success is due to the fact that the sensory cells in the throat has already been damaged to a point whereas the salt water actually cures the lining the same process that is used to cure meats,on the other hand a sore throat in which has not been damaged much may get worse using salt,or eating foods such as a salty soup,and crackers. Now comes another fact if the sore throat is Bacterial certain foods should be avoided such as sweets,and high fructose corn syrups,as the bacteria will thrive on such simple sugars. Cough drops should be avoided,as well as certain mouth washes such as plaque controls,or other washes that contain sugars. The best remedy for a sore throat is a good white whiskey,stay away from the dark. Gargle with the whiskey a few times a day until the sore throat subsides,then have you a shot once or twice a week to help stay off any future occurrences.
Whiskey
Posted by Fiona (Fife, Scotland) on 01/08/2007
★★★★★
I have a few sore throat remedies to share.
Firstly: Fresh fruit ice lollies (popsicles to Americans?) are excellent soothers, especially for children. Sucking on any ice is helpful to the pain, but the added vitamin C from fresh fruit helps the healing process. If you can't find fresh fruit lollies in the shops (Tesco's Finest do fresh orange ones for UK residents) then just squeeze an orange or lemon into your ice tray and suck on them. Combine them with your favourite pain killer, and the world seems a better place.
Secondly: Gargle with neat whisky. No, this isn't a joke - it's absolutely, one hundred percent my favourite sore throat remedy. (Then again - I am a Scot!). I recommend NOT swallowing every time, unless you're in a party mood, so don't use your best single malt. But gargling with potent alcohol, the stronger the better, not only numbs your throat so you feel no pain, but disinfects it, too. I had a sore throat recently that lasted one single, solitary day. I reckon the whisky killed it stone dead.
Whiskey
Posted by Jeff (Shorthills, NJ) on 01/04/2007
★★★★★
Sip some brandy or whiskey very slowly so that it coats the throat. Be careful it might cause some gagging. Do this very slowly with small amounts of whiskey. Perhaps the alcohol in whiskey kills the germs. But proceed with caution.
Replied by Diane
(Collegeville, Pa)
11/04/2011
Whiskey, Honey, Lemon
Posted by Kaylee (Philadelphia, Pa) on 09/06/2011
★★★★★
My grandmother told me she got this remedy from her mother and passed it down to me: whiskey, honey, and lemon. Use equal parts of each and mix together. It may not sound like the most appealing thing out there, but I promise it will relieve any sore throat!
Replied by Notadoctor
(New York)
09/26/2011
Replied by Brittany
(Craigsville, West Virginia)
12/08/2011
White Pepper
Posted by Mary Ann (Rural, South Africa) on 11/03/2008
★★★★★
Thank you for your miracle site. Being pensioners money is an affliction in itself. What joy to find this site. Well here is my small contribution.
Re-aligning a dropped little tongue. At the onset of a bout of sore throat or flu, the small tongue seems to drop back into the throat, affecting the ability to swollow. and is also very uncomfortable, almost worse than the flu its self. Take a small amount of pepper, preferbly white pepper, on the very tip of a round tipped knife and carefully dab onto the tip of the little tongue. This will pull the tongue back into position.
I tell anyone who will listen about this amazing site.
White Pepper
Posted by Quaker (Easton, MD) on 03/20/2007
★★★★★
A welsh lady told me to try white pepper in hot tea for a sore throat and it works for me. Gargling with warm salt water is also good, as are Fisherman's Friend lozenges which contain capsaicin (red pepper).
