10 Home Remedies For Dealing With Pain While Swallowing

Are you finding it painful to swallow any food or even liquid? Don’t worry, as this is a very common issue and individuals of all age groups may experience this. Along with pain felt while swallowing you can experience pain higher in the neck and lower down behind the breastbone also. This pain mostly feels like a strong burning or squeezing sensation and is often started or worsened by consuming certain food items.

The common causes for pain while swallowing include tonsillitis, common cold, acid reflux, chronic throat infection and flu. Some other causes can also include improper food swallowing with rough edges like crackers or chips, swollen lymph nodes in your neck, injury in throat, infection in the ear and when swallowing large pills.

For dealing with pain while swallowing, it is essential to find out what is causing it. It is recommended to visit your doctor if the pain while swallowing is severe, chronic or interferes with breathing, drinking or eating, as it can be a sign of any serious health condition. Meanwhile, try a few simple and effective home remedies for dealing with pain while swallowing.

One of best home remedies for dealing with pain while swallowing issue is doing gargles using salt water. The salt water should be slightly warm, as it has a soothing impact on your throat. The salt helps in killing any bacteria or virus, which may be the cause of a throat infection resulting in pain while swallowing. Also, the salt aids in reducing the inflammation and swelling in neck lymph nodes thus helps in treating the cause and dealing with pain while swallowing.

You have to do the following:

• Add one-fourth teaspoon of the salt in a cup containing warm water.
• Gargle by using the mixture and make sure not to swallow it.
• Repeat this twice everyday for a week to deal with pain experienced with swallowing.

Increasing the intake of fluid is essential to help remain the body hydrated as well as the throat moist. However, for reducing the pain while swallowing, it is recommended to consume warm liquids throughout the day. Any warm liquid will help in soothing the throat and in dealing with pain while swallowing; just try avoiding excess consumption of caffeine because of its dehydrating nature it may worsen the situation. A glass of warm herbal tea, milk or water is useful dealing with pain while swallowing.

In case the pain while swallowing is because of acid reflux, then you must try chewing gum to relieve it. Chewing a piece of gum helps in stimulating saliva production, which in turn washes the acid away that is accumulated in your gut. Saliva helps in neutralizing stomach acids due to its alkaline nature and in this manner helps with dealing with pain while swallowing.

As per different researches, chewing sugar-free chewing gum for nearly half an hour after having a meal may help in relieving signs of GERD (Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease). So, chew a cinnamon-flavoured or sugar-free chewing gum slowly after having a meal.

Ginger helps in reducing the throat pain, which can be responsible in difficulty or pain while swallowing. Ginger possesses anti-inflammatory, expectorant and antiviral properties, which helps in dealing with any kind of pain while swallowing associated with an infection. Moreover, ginger helps soothe digestive troubles also.

Prepare ginger tea by following these steps:

• Mix one teaspoon of ginger (freshly grated) into one cup containing boiling water.
• Allow it to steep for around 3 minutes.
• Mix some lemon juice and raw honey.
• Consume this tea thrice a day.
• You can also take fresh ginger and grate it. Consume small amount many times daily.

Slippery elm possesses gel-like substance known as mucilage, which can deal with throat pain, inflammation, soreness along with pain while swallowing. In fact, Slippery Elm is a traditional home remedy to fight with sore throat and also helps in dealing with acid reflux and heartburn because of the mucilage content present in it. Slippery elm lozenges can also be consumed to deal with pain while swallowing.

• Mix one teaspoon of slippery elm’s inner bark into two cups of boiling water.
• Cover it and let it simmer for around five minutes.
• Now, strain it, mix a little honey and consume slowly when it is still hot.
• Consume it twice or trice in a day to deal with pain while swallowing.

Marshmallow root is helpful in treating throat pain caused due to strep throat or tonsillitis. A gel-like substance is formed when you mix it with water and it helps in reducing the pain while swallowing. Marshmallow root also helps in dealing with acid reflux because of its demulcent and anti-inflammatory properties present in it. How to use marshmallow root for relieving the pain while swallowing:

• Mix one tablespoon of dried marshmallow root into one and a half cup of hot water.
• Cover this mixture and let it simmer for around 20 minutes.
• Now, strain this and mix some honey in it and consume.
• You can consume this herbal tea thrice in a day to deal with pain while swallowing.

Caution: Breastfeeding or pregnant women and diabetic people should not consume marshmallow root.

If you are suffering from common cold, strep throat or tonsillitis resulting in pain while swallowing, then the mixture of honey and lemon will do wonders for you.

Vitamin C present in the lemon helps fight bacteria growth, which leads to strep throat and pain while swallowing. It also promotes your overall health. Honey helps in keeping your throat well-moisturized and also in relieving inflammation and soreness.

• Add one tablespoon of each-lemon juice and honey into one cup of lukewarm water.
• Consume this mixture slowly.
• Consume it for several days as often as needed for dealing with pain while swallowing.

Consume slightly hot turmeric milk to deal with pain while swallowing. Warm turmeric milk will help in bringing down the swelling of enlarged lymph nodes and treating common cold and strep throat. Also, it possesses analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties that help in reducing pain and swelling. Warm turmeric milk also deals with infections and enhance your immunity.

• Add ground black pepper (just a pinch) and one teaspoon of turmeric powder into one glass containing warm milk.
• Mix a little honey if you want.
• Consume it twice a day for speeding up the healing procedure and heal the pain while swallowing.

Whether this problem is caused due to sore throat, tonsillitis or acid reflux, ACV is a very powerful remedy dealing with pain while swallowing. ACV possesses natural antimicrobial properties to fight with infections. Due to its acidic nature, ACV also aids in breaking down the mucus in your throat as well as stopping the bacteria from spreading. In case you are suffering from acid reflux, ACV aids in balancing the acid production in your stomach that results in prevention of acid reflux.

Add 1-2 tablespoons of unfiltered, raw ACV in a cup of water. Now do gargling using it. Do this at least thrice daily to help deal with the issue of pain upon swallowing.
You can also mix 1 teaspoon of each-unfiltered raw ACV and raw honey in 1 cup containing warm water. Comsume this slowly. Repeat it twice or thrice in a day.

For getting relief from a sore throat as well as reducing the pain experienced while swallowing, you should breathe in moist air. A humidifier is helpful in injecting moisture into the air and enhance the humidity in your room. Breathing in moist air helps in dealing with a sore throat and throat inflammation and deals with pain while swallowing.

You should use humidifier where you spend more time and in your bedroom for adding moisture to the air when you are sleeping. Make sure to clean the humidifier properly whenever required. Also change the water regularly on daily basis to stop the growth of bacteria.

Some More Tips to Deal with Pain while Swallowing:

• Try to avoid very hot/cold food items, as it can worsen the situation.
• Consume soothing food items, such as yogurt, soft fruits, mashed potatoes, cooked cereals, soups and broths that are not harsh for the throat.
• Eat your meals slowly by chewing well.
• Take enough rest for ensuring faster recovery from pain upon swallowing.
• Try to avoid things that can irritate the throat such as smoking, chemicals and allergens.

You must take antibiotics or anti-inflammatory medications recommended by a doctor for dealing with esophagus, tonsils or throat infection.

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