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How to Stop a Sore Throat
A sore throat is one of the most common reasons that people go to their healthcare provider, so it makes sense that a lot of people want to know, "How do you stop a sore throat?"
A majority of the time, the cure to a sore throat is just time (about two to five days on average). This is because most sore throats are the result of a viral infection. This type of infection will not respond to antibiotics; however, there are some home remedies that can help relieve a throat infection.
Some of these remedies that can help soothe a sore throat include:
- Pain medicines, such as acetaminophen (Tylenol®) or NSAIDs, such as ibuprofen (Motrin®, Advil®) or naproxen (Aleve®)
- Oral rinses (salt-water gargle)
- Throat lozenges
- Throat sprays
- Decongestants
- Natural therapies.
If the cause of your sore throat is due to a bacterial infection, a healthcare provider can prescribe antibiotics to help decrease the length and severity of symptoms, and decrease the chance for complications.
(For more detail on how to stop a sore throat, click Sore Throat Remedies. This article takes an in-depth look at suggestions for treating a sore throat, including possible medications, over-the-counter medicines, and home remedies.)
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Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD