★☆☆☆☆
WARNING!
I tried about 10 drops of tabasco in warm water for my terrible sore throat. Not a high concentration, but I figured it was a start.
Well, my gargling technique may not be completely up to snuff. I think I let the liquid get too far down "the wrong tube," as it were. It triggered a reaction that closed up my airway and left me unable to breathe for about ten seconds, then gasping and barely able to breathe for thirty seconds after that.
After the world started spinning again, I regained my composure and proceded to simply drink the mixture. It definitely reduced the sore throat pain by about fifty percent, enough to make me able to go to work today, but that not breathing thing is a terrible feeling.
Be careful when trying this!
Tabasco Sauce
★☆☆☆☆
WARNING!
Please post this question on the site. Hi, Having been stuck with a bad flu and an especially sore throat for a few days, I Googled and found this site, read every single post in the thread and decided I should try Tabasco Sauce, which is basically Cayenne but in a liquid form. At dinner last night, I sprinkled a generous amount of the sauce on my steak (20-25 drops) and even though I felt like dipping my tongue in ice water, I could feel my sinuses clearing up and the tenderness in my throat fading away. Mind you, every time I eat spicy food (on very rare occasions), I break out in a sweat and can feel a rush, like my blood is rushing through my body at accelerated speed. An hour after dinner, I sprinkled about 15 drops of Tabasco sauce in a glass of hot water and gargled with it, swallowing a bit at each gargle. A short while after my spicy dinner the gargling session, I experienced a severe panic attack which subsided in about an hour. Capsaicin provokes a rush of endorphins, thus counterbalancing the effect of the Clonazepam (explained below) which I take for chronic Panic Disorder and Epilepsy. "CLONAZEPAM which is a benzodiazepine. Benzodiazepines belong to a group of medicines that slow down the central nervous system. Clonazepam is effective in treating certain types of seizures (convulsions, Petit Mal) and is also used for a mental health condition called Panic Disorder by working on the nerve cells in the brain to enhance the effects of a chemical called gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA). GABA slows down nerve cell activity to cause relaxation and decrease nerve excitement." Later on: "Capsaicin helps prevent and heals stomach ulcers and has anti-inflammatory properties" Contrary to the above, I had severe heartburn in the middle of the night. "Cayenne is safe if used in moderation but can cause problems in people with stomach problems and ulcers." Something I read elsewhere which confirms what I experienced last night and is contradictory to the above quoted statement. "Some practitioners recommend mixing a small amount (starting with one sixteenth of a teaspoon, and working up to one teaspoon) of Cayenne powder in warm water to take 3 times a day. This is so the mouth experiences the hot spice and the stomach prepares itself. The mouth also absorbs much of the goodness itself, giving an immediate effect." In conclusion, I would like to try the experience again but I think I'll follow the above paragraph's advice, go easy at first and observe any reaction I might experience. Thoughts anyone? I don't really want to go to a clinic, wait 3 hours in a roomful of coughing people only to get a prescription for an antibiotic whose side effects are worse than the benefits.
