Roger has a sore throat. Finishing this sandwich today will be as hard as climbing the highest mountain in the world wearing flip-flops.
Roger has taken a bite of his sandwich, chews the piece of breakfast that he has in his mouth and, when he has it well crushed, he swallows it. How it hurts! What on earth has gone down his throat? Roger looks at his sandwich. No, he hasn’t got confused and is eating a ‘fakir’s breakfast’; it is just bread with cheese.
Introducing… The throat!
Have you ever thought of all the things that go down our throats? Air going in and out of our lungs, food, saliva, and sometimes, a confused mosquito, moves through our throats. Most of us use our throats to talk and sing. It is a part of the body that never stops working and that is in contact with many elements. That is why it can become irritated or inflamed.
What is a sore throat?
As Roger would say after living the hell of trying to swallow the crust of his sandwich: “You have a sore throat when your throat hurts”. He is absolutely right: a sore throat is a discomfort, pain, or itch which often makes swallowing difficult. It happens when the throat becomes irritated or inflamed. Sometimes, it can be the sign that we have some illness.
What have I done to have a sore throat?
A sore throat can happen for many reasons. A few of them are shown on the following list:
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A cold. |
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Flu. |
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Various illnesses. |
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Breathing through the mouth. |
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Swallowing mucous (often, when we have a cold, we can notice how the mucous runs down behind our noses). |
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Eating or drinking something that is too hot . |
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Some operations. |
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As a consequence of another illness. |
Starting the day with a sore throat
Have you ever got up in the morning with a sore or dry throat? That probably means that you slept with your mouth open. In that case, drinking some water or fruit juice will help you. You’ll see that as the day goes by, it doesn’t hurt any more.
White spots in the throat
If white spots appear in your throat (pus or abscesses) or you have a high temperature, you have to visit the doctor. In this case, you may also have earache.
Can we avoid having a sore throat?
A sore throat can be passed from one person to another. Therefore, you must not drink from the same glass as somebody who has a sore throat, or cough without covering your mouth.
You should try not to eat or drink anything that is too hot. Your tongue will also be thankful for that. Also, you should not swallow mucous or spend the whole day shouting.
Gargling
I have a sore throat. So now, what can I do? If you already have a sore throat, the main thing is to be patient. In a few days it will be better.
There is nothing that can cure a sore throat, but there are remedies which help to soothe the discomfort:
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Drinking hot liquids mixed with honey. |
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Gargling several times a day with warm water mixed with salt or bicarbonate of soda. |
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In some cases, eating ice-cream. |
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Licking hard sweets (they are refreshing and help to produce saliva). But you must be very careful when eating sweets, as there is the risk of them getting stuck in your throat. |
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Using some sort of gadget that humidifies and cools the air (especially when you breathe with your mouth open). |
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While you have a sore throat, you should try to eat soft things, because they don’t scratch the throat so much. |
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And you already know that you can ask the chemist anything you like. He or she can give you advice about remedies and medicines that help to calm the pain and feeling of discomfort. |
| Gargling with lemon is not the best remedy in the case of sore throats. If the throat is irritated, the acid of this fruit will make the affected part even worse. |