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.
Jim (Fairfield, Iowa) on 08/06/2008:
I found I got much better results with the cayenne warm water gargle if laid down on my back when gargling. It seems that standing up I was not getting the liquid back far enough. My soreness or pain is farther in and up towards my left ear and laying down helped the water go back farther. I had to cover up my mouth with a cloth so as not splatter cayenne water on my face or eyes. I wonder if some of the Nays are not getting the liquid back far enough? and THANKS to all...
Sprinkle some cayenne pepper into a mixture of about 2 tbsp lemon juice and 2 tbsp honey - microwave for about 20 seconds and then stir. Drink it while it's hot.
It doesn't necessarily "cure" my sore throats, but it always makes it feel better. I get tonsillitis that seems to be triggered by my sinus problems and constant post-nasal drip. The cayenne pepper always helps me cough up all the nastiness back there.
If you like pickle juice (I love it), I have also found it helps to drink a couple sips of it mixed with cayenne pepper. This doesn't soothe my throat like the honey/lemon, but it does help me cough up excess mucus.
I've had a sore throat for five days and I've tried everything: saltwater, tea, lemon juice, milk, cold medicine, pain killers, and everything in between. I have a fear of doctors (no offense) so I decided to search some home remedies. I've never heard of using cayenne to cure sore throats but I decided to give it a try. I put 1/4 tsp. cayenne and 2 tbsp. honey in 1/2 cup warm water and drank it straight. My throat did burn for a while but it felt much better. I did the same right before bed and was able to fall asleep faster than I had in the past few nights. The next morning, my throat felt 90% better so I drank it again and in a few hours, the pain was gone! I know I'll definitely be sharing this remedy!
I was getting very desperate as I had had a horrible sore throat for a while. I found this site through Google on Wednesday and thought I'd give the Cayenne Pepper remedy a go. It is now Monday morning and I'm pretty much back to normal. It wasn't the miracle cure that it was for some on here but it definitely made a difference. Admittedly, I did the Cayenne Pepper and took pain killers(iboprufen) also so that would have helped too but I think the Pepper certainly was the main factor in the healing and cleansing process. I recommend it, much better that the traditional salt and water.
Cayenne pepper cured my sore throat. I put about 1/4 tsp. in a 1/2 cup of warm water and gargled it, repeating about four times over the course of the day. Each time offered some relief, and I woke up this morning with no sore throat.
This is a 'Yea' for "Cayenne Pepper Cures Sore Throats."
I *hate* sore throats, probably more than any other body pain. I found this site via digg.com and honestly did _not_ want to try cayenne pepper in anything. I do not like spicy/hot foods. But my sore throat hurt so much I was willing to try almost anything. I added it to my honey-lemon tea, along with some fresh honey and it really helped. It really stung, as I added too much cayenne [1/2 tsp in 1 cup of tea - should have used 1/4 tsp], but it *really* helped and I was able to eat again. So, I added a little cayenne pepper powder and some ginger powder to some hot soup and now my throat feels a lot better. Thank you so much!
I'm so glad that the cayenne pepper worked for so many sore throats out there. However, it did not seem to work for me. I was so excited about this remedy and was really hoping it would work. My husband and son had both been sick, and I finally caught whatever they had. As soon as I started gettind the sore throat, I started drinking apple cider vinegar (8oz hot water, 1 TBSP ACV, 2 TBSP honey) When that didn't help it (which it usually does) I came to this website and tried the cayenne pepper remedy. First, I tried gargling 1/4 tsp. cayenne in 4oz of warm water with honey. That felt similar to spraying the back of my throat with chloraseptic spray, but went away within five minutes or so. After that, I tried drinking it. I added 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper to my normal ACV mix, but again...short term relief only. I've been doing this for three days now, and my throat feels horrible. Hopefully I'll find something else that works for me.
I'm so glad that the cayenne pepper worked for so many sore throats out there. However, it did not seem to work for me. I was so excited about this remedy and was really hoping it would work. My husband and son had both been sick, and I finally caught whatever they had. As soon as I started gettind the sore throat, I started drinking apple cider vinegar (8oz hot water, 1 TBSP ACV, 2 TBSP honey) When that didn't help it (which it usually does) I came to this website and tried the cayenne pepper remedy. First, I tried gargling 1/4 tsp. cayenne in 4oz of warm water with honey. That felt similar to spraying the back of my throat with chloraseptic spray, but went away within five minutes or so. After that, I tried drinking it. I added 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper to my normal ACV mix, but again...short term relief only. I've been doing this for three days now, and my throat feels horrible. Hopefully I'll find something else that works for me.
It is a well known fact that peppers can alleviate pain and has been used widely around the world for operations and child birth. I see no reason that cayenne pepper would not block pain receptors for a sore throat. One should be careful because a percentage of people have an adverse reaction where the throat could start to swell and make breathing difficult.
Michelle (Marshall Saskatchewan, Canada) on 07/03/2008:
wow tried this remedie and it is working i have had a sore throat for 3 days now and getting more miserable by the minute i did what was suggested ie 1/2c. warm water 1/4tsp cayenne 2tbsp honey at first i tried to gargle but gave up and drank it down (keep stirring in between drinking to mix the cayenne) try doing this every 1/2 hour it really does work if the problem is viral not bacterial thankyou i will keep this remedy in my recipe book
P.s. my husband and kids thought i was off my everlovin rocker but the best cures are normally homemade.
All I know that it is too bad that it took me so long to find this remedy. I have been struggling with a horrible sore throat that makes talking, eating, existing hard. It's 2am right now and I've seen this hour for several nights because I've been up with a painful throat. I've gargled with apple cider vinegar for a day and a half, taken a drugstore shelf of other options and was going to the doctor tomorrow. I'm not a fan of spicy food so I was hugely leary of putting cayanne pepper in my tea, but I figured at this point it couldn't hurt worse. Amazing! I've drank half of my tea and my throat is almost feeling back to normal. I"m so very grateful I feel like calling everyone I know (at 2am) to tell them of this wonderful cure. Since they won't care right now, I'm sharing with you. Try it!
I went ahead and tried the cayenne and water (three shakes of cayenne into a cup of water). It definitely numbed the area, but about 20 minutes later the pain came back so I figured, oh well, guess it didn't work for me. But I woke up the next morning and the sore throat was totally gone. Don't know if it's a coincidence (I'd only had a sore throat for three days), but you can be sure the next sore throat I get I'll be trying the cayenne again!
Cayenne pepper soothed my sore throat! I have had the worst sore throat ever for the past week and have been to the hospital twice for pain meds, antibiotics, fluids, and steroids. These things only gave me temporary relief from my huge, painful, white-spotted, puss-covered, swollen tonsils. I tried gargling tons of super salty hot water which made me feel alright for about 30 seconds afterward. I am soo hungry and thirsty because I haven't been able to eat or drink much of anything for the past few days! I was ready to give up and just pluck the suckers out myself when I came across this site with the cayenne pepper cure... I tried it right away! I used about 1/8 tsp of cayenne pepper, a few squirts of lemon and warm water and gargled about 8 times. I felt relief right away and a great tingling sensation. The pepper wasn't spicy at all so i kicked it up a knotch and got even better results! This is AMAZING!!!
Tip - between each gargle I stirred the cayenne pepper a little bit because it seemed to float at the top...
I had the worst sore throat for 2 days. Could barely swallow. I tried garling w/ salt water and hydrogen peroxide. Both worked very little. I saw the Cayenne Pepper cure and gave it a shot. Instead of gargling, I put it in a cup of regular coffee. Approx. 1/8 to 1/4 of cayenne. Amazing after one hour my throat felt 90% better and the coffee tasted good. Had one more cup 4 hours later and that cured it. I'm in awe how well it worked.
Jessica (Lexington, South Carolina ) on 06/08/2008:
I had a bad sore throat, And I couldn't even talk. I tried the cayenne pepper, I made homemade lemonade plus added the juice with 1 lemon to it, and boiled it with 2 tablespoons of honey, then put it in a cup and added 1/8 of a teaspoon of cayenne pepper, and sipped slowly and my sore throat was gone in 3 sips.
ok, so i have this horrible sore throat which im sure it is strep. i have had this for 3 days now and it has not subsided in pain. i cannot swallow my own spit. and i can barely drink water or gatorade. on the second day i awoke i had a 100.5 fever and i felt very very queasy. i used regular everyday normal medacines and my fever went away. the next day, day 3. i awoke with drool all over my pillow, because i guess i couldnt naturally swallow my spit during my sleep. i have no fever today. but my throat is FREAKING killing me. i have used cayenne pepper, and it is not helping to ease the pain. i have also gargled with salt water and that has not helped i just dont know what to do my throat is freaking killing me. basically my throat is driving me nuts.
Cayenne Pepper cured my sore throat. It really works. I had the most painful sore throat (was on day 5) and after trying several things, I was so desperate I gargled 1/8 of a tsp of cayenne from my spice rack in hot water and tried swallowing a little bit each time. The burning from the cayenne was actual relief from the sore throat so I kept doing it. I did this every 15 minutes for the first day. If anything it numbed my sore throat and gave instant minor relief. The next day it was every hour. By the third day I finally noticed a huge improvement. By the fifth day it was completely gone. Now as soon as I sense a sore throat coming on, I sprinkle some on my coffee and it actually cures it. I haven't suffered from a sore throat since then. You need to be persistent when it's a terrible one, even when you don't sense any results. Coating your lips with vaseline helps. Thank you, this is a fantastic site.
I have always drank soup with lots of chicken broth in it to soothe my throat when it gets sore, and I read a lot of feedback on here that said cayenne (red) pepper would help your sore throat. So I decided to mix them together! This time I made chicken and dumplings with lots of broth and red pepper (but I do love hot food) The salt and red pepper defiantly helped with soreness and the heat from the soup cleared me up, even my swollen lymph nodes went down a tad! Amazing I love it!
re: Cayenne pepper for a bad sore throat. It WORKS IT REALLY WORKS! About a couple of days ago I caught my son's sore throat. It got so bad that I woke up in the middle of the night. I have tried gargeling with apple cider vininger and got some relief but the pain would keep coming back. I trid oil of oregano, same thing. Finally I decided to google remembering I had seen something about cayenne pepper. The cayene pepper I had was old so had no effect so went looking in the fridge and found a bottle of hot sauce made with aged cayenne pepper, distilled viniger, water, salt and garlic (you can't taste the garlic) and tried that, first couple of gargles and it burned like crasy especially the swollen sides of my thorat, and I found myself needing to spit after each gargle, it became easier and easier and the burning became less and less. I got at least 70% relief. I used 1/4 tsp of the hot suace in 250 ml of water and used the whole amount up. The way I feel now I know a few more tries and it will be gone for good. Thank you so, so much for everyone who has taken the time and trouble to write their experiences on here. It is 5am now and I am goingback to bed. nite all!!
re: sore throat(remedy). I was sick for about 3 days. Fever went down and I felt much better but I started having really bad sore throat. I tried everything but nothing really worked. I came across your site found cayenne pepper recipe. I tried it every half an hour. I was surprised that it worked so fast. By the afternoon, 70-80% of pain was gone. Thank you.
4 days of a very sore throat. I went to the Dr today & no strep he said "it's Viral, nothing to do but ride it out." I'm thinking what in the world am I going to do, I have to work tomorrow & can't go like this. So I started surfing the net. I mean i've tried everything cough drops, sucrets, hot tea with lots of lemon & honey, vitiman C, Claritin, gurgling with hot salt water, you name it I tried it. I can not believe this really works, I still have a little bit of soreness but I'm going to stick with it. My sore throat improved dramaticly with just the first try. It is a little hot but the pay off is so worth it. Thank a bunch to all who left comments. When I first found this I thought everyone was crazy, but I thought what's the worst that could happen, that my mouth would be on fire for a little bit. Thanks!!
I tried the Cayenne Pepper remedy yesterday, i was getting very tired from lack of sleep, pain killers were not helping. I thought i'd try, it would take a week to get a docs appoinment and for a sore throat!! Off to the shops i went and came back with Cayenne Poweder and some honey. I must have gargled 8 times yesterday, i didn't really feel much at first but i had read a comment saying stick with it. It was like gargling spicy soup. The last time last night it did feel slightly better and i had a good sleep. 3 times today i have gargled and the nagging pain is getting better. I had a bad ache down the side of my neck from my ear which has gone and i still have a slight sore throat, but its on its way out! I am pleased and will keep a pack of powder for future bad throats, i'm glad it helped. I used a good 1/4 teaspoon of powder and good squeese of honey. A couple of times with lemon juice. Warm water and swollowed a little bit as people have been saying but gargled the rest. My advice, give it a go and keep doing it, stick with it for 2 days and it'll help!
I tried 1/8th of a teaspoon of Cayenne Pepper with 2 tablespoons of honey in 250mls of warm water and flushed the infected area of my throat using a sports bottle... my relief was instant. The solution left a tingling feeling in my throat - when this started to ease I flushed my throat again with the solution. I repeated this routine for the next 2 hours & I am now completely free of pain. Thank you to all those who took the time to give feedback - cayenne pepper is a winner!
WOW!! i tried using cayenne to cure my sore throat and it worked!!! i used 1/8 tsp of cayenne and mixed it in just a glass of water and it was amazing!!! i kept swallowing almost expecting something to come back and it wont!! thank you thank you thank you :):):)
I have had an excruciating sore throat for about three days. I even went to the doctor to get antibiotics. They did no help, i tried everything from lozengers, tea, and pain medication. I came across this site and read the cayenne pepper remedy...at first i felt no relief, so i repeated the process of about a pinch of cayenne and hot water about 4 times before going to bed...i woke up in complete relief! I cannot believe the change in my throat. I will now skip the doctor and go straight to this remedy...THANK YOU!!!
I have had the WORST sore throat and nothing was helping. I know that it is good to drink tea and orange juice (so that you pee a lot and clean out your system and get the vitamin C) but not even Cephecal (the numbing cough drops) were helping to relieve the pain. Then, I put vasaline on my lips (as advised) and combined 1 CUP of OJ (without pulp) with 1/4 tablespoon of Cayanne Pepper. It wasn't that hot to me (but I can take hot) and after gargling and then drinking it immediately after, I feel relief. I think I will try this again with more cayanne. Thanks so much! I read my son his stories and wasn't in total pain with a throat losenge in my mouth!
Cayenne pepper cured my sore throat!!! Finally something that really works RIGHT AWAY!!! I love you guys soooo much!!!! I had had this terrible and annoying pain for a few days now and nothing had worked. I hate antibiotics, so trying to avoid a visit to the Dr tomorrow, i decided to google home remedies and i was directed to this site. After reading so many comments i figured it had to help some... So i tried it! OH MY GOD my mouth was on fire!!!! but it WORKED!!! I was amazed..... I recommend covering your mouth with a waschcloth to avoid splashing your face (eyes)...and also, RINSE with milk...do not swallow the milk!! And please don't brush your teeth afterwards.....it makes it worse!!! but who cares?? your sore throat isn't there.... bottom line: INCREDIBLE REMEDY,...
Soon-to-be-mom (Riverside, California) on 02/28/2008:
I'm currently 23 weeks pregnant and don't have a whole lot of options when it comes to cures. I've had the worst sore throat for the last couple days. I haven't slept much due to the pain. I found this sight and decided "What the heck?" I figured the worst that could happen is it wouldn't work. So I mixed about 1/8 tsp. of cayenne with about 8oz. water and gargled until the glass was empty. My sore throat isn't gone yet but I'm sure that if I keep it up it will be soon. I've only done 1 glass and i am already able to swallow without cringing. In between I'm using salt water which helps with the slight burning on my tongue. Next time I might try the spray bottle idea.
Well, after 2 visits to the doctor in 5 days due to a SEVERE sore throat with sores and white spots, I really thought I had strep throat. I tested negative both times, but my throat was so sore that I sat on my couch and cried. I haven't slept in 3 nights because it's just getting more and more worse, even after going to the store and buying $20 worth of medicines for colds and sore throats. I gargled with salt water, took 3 kinds of throat drops, ate ice cream to let it slide down my throat for any relief that I could get. Nothing worked. I even used a sinus rinse that you can buy in Walmart to cleanse out my sinuses. Still, nothing worked. Then thinking I was doomed to be sick forever (it seems like that when your miserable), I googled sore throat remedies and found this website. I, like everyone else, was sick and tired of being sick and tired and looking for SOME form a relief. I went ahead and tried the warm water and cayenne straight up since I felt I couldn't possibly feel any worse, and it WORKED! IT REALLY WORKS! I plan on keeping it up until it's totally gone, but I'm feeling like my old self again! I betcha by tomorrow I'll feel like going outside! My husband is in another state at the moment, but he's got the same thing that I have, so I told him and he's on his way to the store right now! Thank you so VERY, VERY MUCH for this LIFE SAVING information!
I've been sick for about the past two days, with a very strange flu like cold but not quite the flu. Anyway, my throat was hurting me very very badly. It felt like someone stuck a size 11 shoe with spikes down my throat. I was thinking about going to the hospital for antibiotics but instead thought perhaps I should search for a natural cure before spending hundreds of dollars. Sure enough I found your site and saw the comments about cayenne pepper. It just so happens that I have a bottle of ______ cayenne solution in my cabinet. So I gargled and sipped a bit and I can feel a bit of relief when I swallow. It's only been about 10 minutes since I did it and I an feel a difference. I will continue to do it throughout the day and see if makes the soreness go away completely
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