Home Remedy For A Sore Throat

Contrary to what mainstream media tends to teach, experiencing a cold or the flu periodically can actually be helpful to your health.

By and large, the viruses that cause the common cold and flu infect mainly your weakest cells, which you want to get rid of and have replaced by healthy cells. This makes sense, doesn't it? Cells that are already burdened with excessive waste products and toxins are most likely to allow viruses to infect them.

So in the big scheme of things, a cold or flu can allow your body to purge itself of old and damaged cells that, in the absence of a viral infection, would normally take longer to identify, destroy, and eliminate.

With all of that said, you should know of a natural remedy for a sore throat that can often precede a cold or flu. Yes, that feeling of having crushed glass floating around in your throat can often be remedied without conventional over-the-counter analgesics.

I've written before about gargling with salt water. Sometimes, several quality gargling sessions with salt water is enough to resolve a prickly throat.

But where you need more lysing power, you might try using a mixture of hot red chili powder - often called Cayenne pepper - and orange juice. Koreans call Cayenne pepper go choo kah roo, which are the fine hot chili pepper flecks used to make thousands of varieties of kim chi. Just a simple blend of 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon of hot red chili powder and pulpy orange juice, taken with a straw, can provide significant relief from a sore throat.

Be sure not to use more than 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon for about every 4 ounces of orange juice, as Cayenne pepper is a highly concentrated spicy food powder, and when taken in higher amounts, can aggravate parts of your gastrointestinal tract. This warning is especially important to heed where there is a history of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), peptic ulcers, or even ulcerations in the duodenum.

Cayenne pepper plus pulpy orange juice is best taken down with a straw, as there is no need to expose the mucous lining of your mouth to the active ingredients of hot red chilis. Just take this mixture straight to your throat with a straw, slow and steady. Repeat every two to three hours until your throat is free of discomfort.

The idea is to deliver the active ingredients of red hot chili powder to the viruses that have lodged themselves within the tonsils and adenoids that line the back of your throat region. Viruses that cause colds and flus typically get caught by your tonsils and adenoids before they spread through your body. In this way, your tonsils and adenoids are important parts of your immune system because they are located near the entrance of your breathing passages, where they serve as a first line of defence against undesirable airborne microorganisms and substances.

This, by the way, is why it is best not to remove tonsils and adenoids from your throat region. Chronic swelling of tonsils and adenoids is best addressed by reducing sugar intake, adopting a minimally processed diet that is rich in fresh plant foods, and supporting immune system health by getting plenty of rest, exercise, and exposure to sunlight and fresh air.

Depending on how quickly you turn to this natural home remedy for a sore throat, you may even ward off a full blown cold or flu. But even if you develop a cold or flu, you can at least go through this natural cleansing process without an agonizingly sore throat. Don't forget to get lots of rest, drink plenty of healthy fluids, ensure optimal vitamin D status, and take comfort in knowing that countless viruses are at work on your behalf to dispose of your weakest cells. And don't forget to blow your nose as often as it runs - help your body get rid of what it naturally wants to eliminate.

I've hesitated in the past to share this tip of using red hot chili powder with orange juice for a sore throat because I was afraid that some might overdo this and end up suffering elsewhere. When taken properly, this remedy often astonishes with its effectiveness, so please be careful and conservative in your use of red hot chili powder.

For young children or those who have a history of gastrointestinal trouble when taking spicy foods, you can use even less red hot chili powder, and even consider ingesting a banana, potato, or even some rice before taking the Cayenne-orange juice blend, as having some healthy mass in the stomach right before taking the drink can help protect the lining of the GI tract against the active ingredients of red hot chilis.

Please consider sharing this information with family and friends. And don't forget to emphasize the warning on being conservative in dose. It's such a highly effective home remedy without the cost or negative effects of conventional pharmaceutical solutions.

Related Posts:

What Most Doctors Won't Tell You About Colds and Flus

How to Make Sure that You Are Getting Enough Vitamin D

How to Make Kim Chi