[YEA]  01/15/2009: Rob from Mount Vernon, NY: "sore throats and acid reflux!

Here's a tip I'd love to share. Last year I dealt with a sore throat for over 3 months! Finally went to an ENT who put the camera up my nose and down my throat and saw that there was no infection. As it turns out he diagnosed it as acid reflux! So he put me on a reflux regimen and started me on AcipHex which I tried for a week to no avail. Then I tried Nexium out of pocket since it was not covered in my insurance formulary, and in about a day and a half, it was gone! Hope this helps someone!"

07/08/2009: Sheri from Winston-Salem, NC replies: "I am a singer, and had lost my singing voice for about 3 months--no pain--just couldnt' sing. Dr. diagnosed me with acid reflux, and put me on Prilosec OTC. I recovered in a short amount of time. Evidently, when we sleep some of the acid comes up in our throats and harms the vocal cords. Interesting stuff--I didn't even know I had acid reflux. hope this helps!"

03/15/2010: Bonny from Nassau, Bahamas replies: "Vocal help suggestions anyone?

3 months ago what I thought was a discomfort in throat & neck from maybe too much singing is still with me after 4 different antibiotics, numerous tests & 2 scopes from ENT doctors. One thought it was acid reflux due to the inflammed appearance where the oesophagus meets the voice box....10 days on omeprazole made me feel worse . The next gave me anti-inflammatories which seemed to help but once stopped, the raw feeling & sensitivity on right side of throat returned. I cannot even speak for long without a strained feeling, nevermind sing.......any suggestions, this is so depressing......."

12/07/2011: Mike O from Blackwood, Nj Usa replies: "Orange Peel Extract is the answer. It is all natural not a prescribed pill... D-Lymonene is what I use take it once in the morning and works like a charm! First few times you will burp up oranges but that means it's working. Good Luck"

03/06/2012: Lou from Tyler, Tx replies: "I had horrible pain seemingly in the thyroid and hoarse voice today and the last few days. Hard to breathe and swallow. I used one of Ted's suggestions. I put 5 drops of hydrogen peroxide (3%) in a bottle of water 16.5 oz. (approx. 1/2 liter) and a little bit of borax (1/8 tsp. ) I feel 100% better now. Drink this slowly over 1/2 of the day."

[YEA]  05/16/2007: Brice from Sringfield, USA: "I've had my fare share of sore throats, and I find that taking one capsule (1 billion count of organisms) of Acidophilus plus one 200mg of Ibuprofen every 4 hours helps with the pain.THIS IS JUST A SUGGESTION. This works for me, but may cause further health problems in others. Acidophilus is a probiotic, which means you shouldn't take it with antibiotics. Acidolphilus contains the same Lactobacillus (rod-shaped bacteria) found in milk or cheese. The breakdown of nutrients by Lactobacillus Acidophilus produces lactic acid, hydrogen peroxide, and other byproducts that make the environment hostile for undesired organisms. Acidolphilus is not recognized by the FDA to cure any disease. Ibuprofen helps in reducing the swelling. Ibuprofen is a blood thinner and shouldn't be used with other blood thinners. Ibuprofen has also been known to cause stomach pains and stomach bleeding. If stomach pains occur, drinking milk may help. READ THE DRUG FACTS LABEL."

08/17/2008: Tamara from Yukon, OK replies: "Acidophilus can actually be taken with an antibiotic and should be taken with an antibiotic. This is why.... antibiotics kill good and bad bacteria. When the good bacteria is killed, it can cause diarrhea or a yeast infection. The probiotic, acidophilus, will help keep the normal flora, or good bacteria intact and help prevent antibiotic associated diarrhea or yeast infections."

03/19/2009: Ellen from Chicago, IL replies: "Yes I agree, it is a must to take the acidophilus when you are on antibiotic treatment, the key however, is to take it between doses of the antibiotic, for at least as long as you are on the treatment and longer if you desire. If you have been on previous/numerous antibiotics you could take the acidophilus as a daily supplement."

[YEA]  09/20/2012: Egf from Guadalajar, Jalisco: "I gargled with c. Pepper, cider vinegar and wrm water. It tickled my tongue and scalded my throat but it stopped hurting and feel better immediately. Big Yea"

[YEA]  06/08/2012: Rebeccarhae from Los Angeles, California replies: "Last night I sipped 1/2 c. ACV, 1/2 tsp. And 3 T. Honey mixed with warm water until I couldn't drink anymore, then gargled with the rest. When I woke up the pain was nearly gone. Amazing results! Which saved my skin because I started a new job today.

I agree with whoever suggested it tastes like wing sauce. Having that in my head made it more palatable somehow, even though I don't usually seek out spicy food.

I feel sorry for the girl who tried to temper the ACV with apple juice- seems like a mistake to me, like putting blue cheese in milk or RW vinegar in wine. But yes. This totally worked and I will do it again- earlier next time!

Oh, and PS. I bought all the necessary ingredients for around ten bucks, too. Most otc medicines are more expensive than that..."

01/13/2011: Sushilvr from Gainesville, Fl replies: "Vitamin C and Vitamin E

You might want to try this remedy; take 3000 mg of Vitamin C along with one 400 I. U. softgel of Vitamin E.

I'm an R.N. And had not heard of this before until a friend of mine in healthcare mentioned a couple of years ago. Apparently Vitamin E has a synergistic effect on Vitamin C. 3000 mg of Vitamin might sound like a lot; but remember C is water soluble, so what your body doesn't use, you'll pee the rest out. Granted Vitamin E is not water soluble, but I only take this concoction when I begin to feel sick. I'll take it as soon as the symptoms begin, then when I go to bed, when I wake up the next morning, and usually one more dose several hours later. I typically don't need to take it more than that as my symptoms disappear and whatever it was that was starting never culminated into a cold or anything else. You can buy Vitamin C where each tablet is 1000 mg; so you only need to take three of them. They're large and granted Vitamin C is kind of bitter, even if they're flavored tablets and the larger ones tend to be more expensive; but I prefer to do that as opposed to taking several of the smaller ones that are a smaller dose per tablet.

Anyone I've mentioned this to by the way, has eventually gotten back with me telling me that this worked for them.

I've only recently returned to nursing full-time as I had been a FT CSI while working PT as an R.N. For 13 years... So I'm still in the process of building up my immunity level. Most people in healthcare, after working full-time for 6 months, will have never been sicker those first 6 months, and then suddenly, it seems you just don't get anything. In the meantime, I'll stick with C & E regimen. It's worked every time without fail so there has to be something to it. I've been using it for about two years now since my friend told me about it.

Thanks for reading, and I hope this works for anyone else who may try it."

EC: Thanks, Sushlivr! Your feedback has been cross-posted to the flu remedies page.

12/13/2012: Charlie from Jacksonville, Fl replies: "Turmeric powder! Its a miracle worker! Gargle some of this in warm water a couple times and bam! Your sore throat is gone! I swear! Old Indian secret taught to me by a friend."

03/06/2012: Lou from Tyler, Tx replies: "I used to make a similar recipe with Constant Comment orange rind and spices tea and 1 T. ACV with an orange slice and a lemon slice. The bioflavenoids from the white of the rind are what heals you. I don't think adding cayenne would hurt!"

[YEA]  06/19/2009: Bambam775 from Puyallup, WA replies: "So after suffering for most of the day with an excrutiating sore throat, I came to earthclininc.com. Why it took me so long I don't know. Anyway, I put 2 T raw honey, 2T ACV and a couple dashes Cayenne in hot water. I have a hard time with ACV because I took it for so long it now makes me gag. But I am suffering through and it seems to be easing the sore throat. Nature knows how to help us after all! I'll keep using it as long as I can to make sure the YUCK is gone. Thanks for all the great ideas from everyone."

12/22/2011: Sorethroatcomplainer from Atlanta, Pa replies: "So, I found that Cayenne pepper doesn't dissolve. I didn't realize this until AFTER I made my magical sore throat remedy: Chicken broth, tsp. of Cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp. of garlic and ginger. But anyhow, if you take a very small strainer and place it over your tea cup/bowl, you will avoid drinking the nasty little gritty pieces at the top."

02/21/2012: Vivek from Gurgaon, India replies: "I was suffering from sore throat. And It was not the first time this happened to me. And everytime it had happened, I had to take steroids to get rid of this. But this time I visited this site and then I decided not to take any medicines. Very first day I started gargling with cayenne pepper. It helped but another day my throat has more pain. I decided to continue and doing that again and again. I bought ACV also. Gargled with the mixture. And then I took raw Tulsi and Garlic. I took one tablespoon of coconut thrice each day. And now after 4 days, I have finally cured by sore throat.... I would say keep faith on this and keep doing. It will surely help."

[YEA]  05/03/2012: David from Tacoma, Wa replies: "This definitely works! Although I did tweak mine considerably. I took about 12 oz of hot water and added approx. 2 tsp. of cayenne, 1 heaping tbs. of salt, a generous amount of agave syrup, and a bit of rum. I mixed well and heated again. At first the cayenne was a bit hot, and this is coming from someone who likes kimchee, but I quickly adjusted to it. I gargled for maybe two minutes the first time, after which I felt an immediate relief... After I got over the slight burning. I repeated twice more throughout the day with similar results, and the next day my throat was just fine. Thanks for the advice!"

[YEA]  05/06/2011: Ninae from Queens, Ny replies: "Hi,

Everyone is different. I tried the Cayenne pepper, ACV and the turmeric gargles all at the same day. I gargled with Cayenne 3 times and once with Apple Cider Vinegar once with turmeric in a period of 2 hours. I also filled a glass with salt and warm water and I gargled with that as well.

In between I took throat lozenges and I steamed some wated dropped some Eucalyptus drops about 10 and inhaled to open up my sinuses.

My throat dosent hurt anymore. My ear pain diminished... I dont know which one did the trick but my sore throat is gone and its only been an hour! I know its alat of work but I was determined to try it and it worked for me..."

[YEA]  09/12/2011: Poppy111 from Egremont, Cumbria, England replies: "My 20 year old son has had a very severe sore throat for over a week. Whenever we ring for a doctor's appointment it is always about a week's wait and he is going on holiday in two days so was not going to be able to get an appointment. He is rarely ill but this hit him really hard. Anyway he hadnt eaten for four days and we were starting to think he wasn't going to get to go on his holidays as even drinking juice was hurting. So at 3. 30pm this afternoon I gave him a water and cayenne solution to gargle with, followed by a spoonful of manuka honey, vitamin supplements, berocca and an anti-inflamatory. We repeated the cayenne gargle and honey every hour. By 5.30 pm he had eaten a burger and said he could barely feel the sore throat. We are going to continue this tomorrow and hopefully he will get his first good night's sleep for a week and feel all ready for his hols in the morning. Cayenne is definitely the way forward! L"

[YEA]  10/05/2011: Melanie from Tampa, Fl replies: "Pure honey works better than anything. Honey coats the throat and instantly takes away the pain. 2 or 3 spoonsful, or just hold the bottle over your mouth and squeeze the bottle until your mouth is full of honey."

11/25/2011: Veronica from Norwalk, Ct Usa replies: "Honey alone DIDN'T work for me. It did absolutely nothing. I tried salt, honey and ACV and those only worked temporarily. The cayenne with a little bit of honey is doing the best job. I'm going to add ACV and gargle for a while.

I've had this sore throat for 3 days now, so I know it won't be cured immediately, but it's doing a great job of making me feel a little better, and not just temporarily."

[NAY]  12/11/2010: Ed from Pontevedra, Spain replies: "I read the advice and tried the method of adding a teaspoon of cayenne to a glass of water with a pinch of salt. I am a teacher and struggled through my class and was desperate for a solution after trying everything from honey and lemon, throat lozenges and so on. Unfortunately I got worse after gargling with the cayenne mixture, it may have been coincidental, but my temperature increased and I was shivering for almost half an hour. Certainly this remedy did not work for me. Today I am feeling better but mainly as I have rested and also it's the weekend so I don't have classes. I'm also keeping my throat covered with a scarf and eating fruit until it's going out of fashion. I'd say the best cures are rest and vitamin C."

01/29/2013: Kathleen from Los Angeles, Ca replies: "I was so happy to see this modification as I also didn't have cayenne pepper! I'm enjoying sipping my new recipe for wing sauce... Hahahaha..... And hope my throat gets better!"

[YEA]  01/29/2013: Kathleen from Los Angeles, Ca replies: "It's Kathleen, checking back. Happy to report within minutes my sore throat felt better. Within an hour it was gone! I seemed to have a lot of energy, so I got out of bed and walked 2 miles! I'd say there is something to this "concoction" and I've already recommended it to many of my friends who are home sick! I'm so thankful to have found this site.... Thank you!"