Sore Throat Remedies: 12 Natural Ways to Get Fast Relief

Honey coats a raw throat, and people have used it that way for as long as they've kept bees. Scripture calls it good: "My son, eat thou honey, because it is good; and the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste" (Proverbs 24:13). In a review of 14 studies of children and adults with colds and other upper respiratory infections, honey eased overall symptoms more than usual care (3 studies), along with how often (8 studies) and how hard (5 studies) people coughed.7 In a Cochrane review of 6 randomized trials with 899 children aged 1 to 18, honey eased how often children coughed by 1.62 points on a 7-point scale more than placebo in the 2 placebo-controlled trials (402 children), rated moderate certainty.3 In a later Japanese trial of 161 children aged 1 to 5, honey and a honey-flavored syrup eased night coughs about equally.24 In the Cochrane review, honey also worked about as well as the cough medicine dextromethorphan (2 trials, 149 children) and better than the antihistamine diphenhydramine (1 trial, 80 children), both rated low certainty.3

Honey helps the throat itself heal, too: in 8 randomized trials of children recovering from tonsil surgery, it eased pain from day 1 through day 7 and cut the painkillers they needed.15

Manuka honey, from bees that feed on New Zealand's manuka bush, is my honey for a sore throat.11 In lab tests, it killed the strep bacteria behind strep throat and broke up the protective films they form.25 Manuka works as an everyday sweetener, too, and I recommend a full teaspoon to a tablespoon a day, taken with propolis, as a one-two punch for your immune system.4

How: Take it by the spoonful, or stir it into herbal tea once the tea is cool enough to sip. For a child aged 1 or older, one placebo-controlled trial of 300 children aged 1 to 5 gave about 1½ teaspoons (10 grams) once, 30 minutes before bed.26

Best for: A scratchy, raw throat and the cough that comes with it.

Study takeaway: in a Cochrane review, honey eased children's coughing more than placebo (2 trials, 402 children) and about as well as the cough medicine dextromethorphan (2 trials, 149 children).

Zinc works right where a cold starts, because as a lozenge dissolves, it releases zinc ions into your throat, where the cold virus is multiplying.17 In pooled data from 3 placebo-controlled trials of 199 adults with colds, where neither the people nor the researchers knew who got what, 70% of people taking zinc acetate lozenges had recovered by day 5, against 27% on placebo lozenges, and the zinc group recovered at 3.1 times the rate of the placebo group.5 Looking symptom by symptom in the same trials, the sore throat itself eased 18% sooner, a gap too small to rule out chance, while a scratchy throat cleared 33% sooner, hoarseness 43% sooner and cough 46% sooner.17

Across 7 trials of 575 people taking more than 75 mg of zinc a day from lozenges, colds were 33% shorter, and 192 to 207 mg a day did no better than 80 to 92 mg.27 A 2024 Cochrane review of 34 trials with 8,526 people found that in its 8 treatment trials (972 people), zinc may shorten a cold by 2.37 days, rated low certainty.28 Our guide to foods high in zinc covers the everyday side.

Dose: The trials used zinc acetate lozenges supplying 80 to 92 mg of zinc a day, one every 2 to 3 hours while awake; in two of the three trials, people started within 24 hours of their first symptoms.517 Let each one dissolve slowly instead of chewing it.

Best for: The first day of a cold, when your throat first turns scratchy.

Study takeaway: in 3 placebo-controlled trials, 70% of adults on zinc acetate lozenges had recovered by day 5, against 27% on placebo.

Propolis is the resin bees use to seal and protect the hive, and I really like it for viral infections like the common cold or flu.29 With a sore throat coming on, my advice is to take it 3 times a day.4 In an Italian trial of 122 adults with a mild upper respiratory infection (a sore throat, hoarseness or a red throat), people got either a poplar-propolis throat spray or a placebo spray, without them or the researchers knowing which. By day 3, 83% of the propolis group were free of symptoms, against 28% of the placebo group, and the propolis group got well about 2 days sooner, with no reactions linked to the spray. One co-author works for the extract's maker.21 Our guide to bee propolis covers its other uses.

Dose: The trial used a spray with 15 mg of polyphenols per mL: 2 to 4 sprays, 3 times a day, for 5 days.21

Best for: A sore, red throat with hoarseness in the first days of a cold.

Study takeaway: in a placebo-controlled trial of 122 adults, 83% were symptom-free by day 3 on a propolis spray, against 28% on placebo.

Sage has a long history as a mouth and throat herb, and the European Medicines Agency lists sage leaf as a traditional herbal medicine for mouth and throat complaints.30 In a German trial of 286 adults with a viral sore throat, a 15% sage spray eased throat pain more than a placebo spray over the first 2 hours after the first dose, with only mild dryness or burning as side effects. The lead author worked for an herbal medicine company.22

In a Swiss trial of 154 people aged 12 and older with an acute sore throat, sage even held its own against a drug. A spray of echinacea and sage, 2 puffs every 2 hours, relieved sore throats about as well as a drug spray of chlorhexidine and the numbing agent lidocaine: 63.8% against 57.8% responded by day 3. The sprays were masked from both the people and the researchers, and the herbal spray's maker paid for the trial.31 My herb guide credits that echinacea-sage spray for sore throats.20

Dose: The echinacea-sage spray trial used 2 puffs every 2 hours, up to 10 times a day.31

Best for: Throat pain that makes it hard to swallow.

Study takeaway: an echinacea-sage spray relieved sore throats about as well as a chlorhexidine-lidocaine drug spray (63.8% against 57.8% by day 3).

Licorice root builds up the throat's protective barrier by stimulating the cells that make protective mucus in the stomach and throat.20 Its human trials come from operating rooms, in people having surgery with a breathing tube, which leaves the throat raw afterward. In a Vienna trial of 236 adults having chest surgery with a large breathing tube, people gargled either licorice extract (0.5 grams in 30 mL of water) or sugar water for 1 minute beforehand, and which gargle each person got was hidden from them and from the researchers. A sore throat struck 19% of the licorice group against 36% of the sugar-water group at 30 minutes, 10% against 35% at 90 minutes, and 21% against 45% at 4 hours.32 A review of 5 trials in 609 adults found that licorice used before a breathing tube cut the risk of a sore throat the next day by 56%, with no significant side effects.23 I rate the evidence for a licorice gargle as good, and it's how I use licorice for a sore throat.20

How: Simmer 1 teaspoon of licorice root in a cup of water for 10 minutes, let it cool until warm, and gargle with the cup 2 to 3 times a day, spitting it out; the recipe is below.20

Best for: A raw, scratchy throat.

Study takeaway: in a placebo-controlled trial of 236 adults, a licorice gargle cut sore throats at 90 minutes after surgery to 10%, against 35% with sugar water.

Gargling salt water is one of the oldest throat remedies there is, and it's on the CDC's list of self-care steps for a sore throat.2 I suggest it too, along with steam from a running shower.11 In a Scottish pilot trial, 66 adults started within 48 hours of a cold to rinse their nose and gargle with salt water, most of them at a 3% sea-salt strength and up to 6 times a day for the first 2 days, while others kept to usual care. The salt-water group was sick 1.9 fewer days (6.8 days against 8.7), used 36% less over-the-counter medicine and cleared the virus from their swabs faster, and 35% fewer of their household members caught the cold, though people knew which group they were in.6 The researchers propose that the chloride in salt helps the lining cells of your airway mount their own antiviral defense.6

In a trial of 576 adults with COVID-19, who started rinsing and gargling salt water up to 5 days into the illness, salt water did about as well as a traditional water rinse.34 Even plain water helps, and in a Japanese trial of 387 healthy adults over one winter, gargling water at least 3 times a day cut the rate of new colds by 36%.33

How: Stir about a teaspoon of fine sea salt into a cup of warm water, gargle and spit, several times a day for the first 2 days; the recipe is below.6

Best for: The first 2 days of a cold, and anyone who wants relief that costs next to nothing.

Study takeaway: in a pilot trial of 66 adults, rinsing the nose and gargling with salt water from the start of a cold cut 1.9 days off the illness.

Slippery elm bark and marshmallow root are mucilage herbs, which means that in water they turn slick and gel-like, and that coating settles over an irritated throat. The FDA lists elm bark as a demulcent for the temporary relief and protection of irritated areas in a sore mouth and throat,16 and the European Medicines Agency recognizes marshmallow root's traditional use for irritation of the mouth or throat and the dry cough that comes with it.35

In a trial at three clinics in Minnesota and Wisconsin, 60 adults with an acute sore throat drank 5 to 8 ounces of a tea combining slippery elm, marshmallow root and licorice with four other herbs, or a placebo tea, 4 to 6 times a day, and no one knew which tea was which. Pain on swallowing eased more with the herbal tea at 5, 10, 15, 20 and 30 minutes after the first cup, and on a summed pain score over that half hour, the herbal tea group improved by 43.8 points against 16.5 with placebo. The first author worked for the tea's maker.8 My Acid Reflux & GERD Protocol uses both herbs between meals to coat the throat and esophagus.10

How: Stir 1 to 2 teaspoons of slippery elm or marshmallow root powder into warm water, or brew either one as a tea, and sip it between meals.10 Slippery elm also comes as lozenges.

Best for: A dry, raw throat, and the throat irritation that comes with reflux.

Study takeaway: in a placebo-controlled trial of 60 adults, a tea with slippery elm, marshmallow and licorice eased pain on swallowing within 5 minutes.

A hot drink is the simplest remedy on this list, and it works fast. In a British study of 30 adults with a cold or flu, a hot fruit drink brought immediate and lasting relief of sore throat, runny nose, cough, sneezing, chilliness and tiredness; the same drink at room temperature eased only the runny nose, cough and sneezing.19 My advice when you're sick is to drink plenty of water and lots of herbal teas, and thyme and ginger are two of the best.11 I like adding a little local honey or Manuka honey to ginger tea or thyme tea.11

How: Sip it warm rather than scalding, all day long. The tea section and recipes below have the options.

Best for: Fast comfort at any hour, and staying hydrated when swallowing hurts.

Study takeaway: a hot drink relieved sore throat right away in a study of 30 adults with a cold or flu; the same drink at room temperature didn't.

Dry indoor heat can make a sore throat feel worse, and moist air brings comfort back. A clean humidifier or cool-mist vaporizer is on the CDC's self-care list,2 and steam from a running shower does the same job in a few minutes. I suggest a humidifier whenever your throat feels dried out.11

When congestion comes along with the sore throat, eucalyptus oil adds to the steam. I recommend rubbing eucalyptus oil on your chest with coconut oil, and my herb guide puts the chest rub at 2% to 3% in a carrier oil and steam at 2 to 3 drops in a bowl of hot water.1120 Our guide to essential oils for a sore throat covers the others.

How: Run the humidifier at night, or breathe shower steam for a few minutes, two or three times a day.

Best for: A dry, raw throat in heated winter air, and a sore throat with congestion.

Study takeaway: a humidifier and shower steam are simple self-care steps for a dry, sore throat.

These two herbs work on the cold behind your sore throat, and I recommend echinacea for sore throats, with elderberry along with it.11 Both are cooling herbs: in Chinese medicine I match elderberry to hot-type colds with fever and a sore throat, and in Native American and Western herbal tradition I match echinacea to hot, early infections with a sore throat, swollen glands and the tingle that says a cold is coming.20

In pooled trials with 180 people, elderberry substantially reduced upper respiratory symptoms.36 Across 14 studies, echinacea lowered the odds of catching a cold by 58% and shortened colds by 1.44 days,37 and in a 4-month placebo-controlled trial of 755 adults, in which two of the authors had ties to the extract's maker, people taking echinacea had fewer colds and fewer days sick.38

Dose: At the first symptoms, I recommend 1 tablespoon of elderberry syrup 4 times a day for 3 to 5 days, and echinacea tincture at 2.5 mL 3 times a day.20

Best for: The first sign of a cold, especially one that runs hot.

Study takeaway: across 14 studies, echinacea lowered the odds of catching a cold by 58% and shortened colds by 1.44 days.

Your immune system fights a cold better when you sleep enough. In a study of 153 healthy adults who were given a cold virus, those who'd averaged less than 7 hours of sleep in the weeks before were 2.94 times as likely to develop a cold as those who slept 8 hours or more.18 In a second study of 164 adults whose sleep was tracked with a wrist monitor before they got the virus, sleeping under 5 hours, or 5 to 6 hours, a night raised the odds of a cold about fourfold (4.50 and 4.24) compared with more than 7 hours.39

How: My first rule when you're sick is plenty of rest: go to bed early, sleep in, and keep your room dark and cool.11 Our guide to sleep hygiene covers the rest of a good night.

Best for: Everyone with a sore throat, and anyone traveling through cold and flu season.

Study takeaway: adults who slept less than 7 hours were 2.94 times as likely to catch a cold after exposure as those who slept 8 hours or more.

Chicken soup is one of the oldest sick-day foods there is, and warm broth keeps you hydrated and goes down easily when it hurts to swallow. In a lab study, a traditional chicken soup slowed the movement of the white blood cells that drive inflammation, and both the vegetables and the chicken had the effect.40

How: Make it with chicken bone broth, vegetables, garlic, ginger and herbs; my sick-day soup recipe is below.11 Our guide to bone broth covers what's in it.

Best for: Every meal of a sick day, and anyone whose appetite is low.

Study takeaway: in a lab study, a traditional chicken soup slowed the white blood cells that drive inflammation.