Does Honey Help Sore Throat?
Sore throat usually makes it painful to swallow food or even to talk. It could happen due to viral infection, cold or flu. Though sore throat is something that is very common and not serious, it is recommended you should seek medical help if it persists for long.
Home remedies such as gargling with salt water, taking plenty of warm fluids like warm water or ginger tea with honey and sucking on lozenges usually help to soothe the discomfort caused by soar throat till it is cured.
Honey is a natural and healthy way to soothe a sore throat. It is one of the best home remedies to help heal other ailments too.
Honey has been used for centuries as a natural remedy for sore throats, coughs and other respiratory issues. There are many variations of honey, and each variety has its own healing properties.
What are the symptoms of a sore throat?
- Trouble while swallowing
- Trouble talking
- Throat gets dry and scratchy
- Redness in the back of the mouth
- Possibility of bad breath
- Mild cough
- Swollen neck glands
How is Honey Used in Medication?
From ancient times, honey has been known for its medicinal values and is in use for various treatments, such as bronchial asthma, tuberculosis, eye diseases, hepatitis, eczema, fatigue, healing of wounds, worm infestation, piles, constipation, hiccups, ulcers, dizziness and even throat infections. Honey used widely because of its antiseptic, antipyretic, antioxidant properties used for healing and cleansing.
Honey is used as medication for acid reflux, as it may prevent the damage by removing free radicals. Reflux is generally partly caused by free radicals that damage the cell lining of your digestive track. It helps reduce inflammation in the esophagus and coats the stomach lining due to its texture.
Hence, honey can be used in various forms to help reduce multiple symptoms to maintain a healthy and balanced life.
Benefits of Honey For Sore Throat
Honey has various benefits, and it can be very helpful when you are suffering from a sore throat. But how does honey help? Let's learn about it.
- Boosts up throat
Honey has anti-inflammatory properties, which help boost up your throat. Its antibacterial properties help clean the throat and act as a wound healer.
- Provides immediate relief
- Tastes Good
Many people keep their distance from medicines due to its taste. The bitter taste is what puts people off. But this is not the case with honey. Rather honey is known for its sweetness, and when this sweetness can be used in the form of medicine, nothing can be more refreshing. So, if you are looking to cure your sore throat but are afraid of the bitter taste of any medicine, you can always consider honey for its medicinal properties.
Which Honey You Should Take. Regular or Raw Honey?
The difference between the two honey is obvious from their names. Raw honey is the one that is only strained and bottled without heating, this process retains all the natural nutrients that honey contains, other than having a fuller aroma and taste. Which means that it has all the nutrients and antioxidants to fight diseases.
While regular honey is processed in the factories by heating and filtering it before it reaches us. Heating kills most of the enzymes, vitamins, minerals and amino acids and the filtering process removes most of the pollen. There is also a possibility that sweeteners and fillers are added to regular honey. So what you are having may not be 100% honey.
So the answer is simple. Raw honey is 100% honey with all its natural nutrients intact.
How to Take Raw Honey For a Sore Throat?
Take two tablespoons of raw honey and mix it with warm water and sip it, you will find immediate relief when you try this homemade remedy.
You can also add a few more ingredients to enhance the taste. Mix raw honey with some fresh, sliced ginger and a dash of lemon juice in warm water, you could also add a few tea leaves to this concoction to give you a different drink each time you drink it.
Conclusion
Countless generations have used honey as a home remedy to treat their sore throat. Due to its antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral properties, honey is used for treating various diseases. The sweet taste makes it for an ambrosial medicine. For people who are weak, honey is used as a nutritious, easily digestible food. But to note, children under one year of age are not advised to be given honey due to Clostridium bacteria that can cause allergies.