Chronic Sore Throat & Chronic Cough
Natural Doctor, Los Angeles: To find out the true nature of why you have a chronic sore throat, or a chronic cough, you will need an in-person evaluation in Beverly Hills. Our evaluation looks for the potential underlying causes of your chronic cough, or sore throat. However, if your sore throat symptoms are only recent you don't need a phone consultation with me about how to cure your 1-3 day scratchy throat. Just read this page instead. Reading this doesn't cost you anything.
Chronic Cough, or Chronic Sore Throat natural remedies
The reason I am not as concerned as you might be about a recent sore throat or scratchy throat is because a sore throat is likely just a temporary acute condition. Give it a few days without taking any conventional, common cold, over-the-counter chemical medicines and you will generally be fine anyway. There's no need to call me and ask what you can do for your temporary scratchy throat. I enjoy helping people with chronic conditions that have resisted all other methods of treatment. including a chronic cough that has lasted many weeks or months. Definitely call today to request your appointment if you are coughing for many weeks. Temporary conditions like a cold don't interest me so much. If that's what you have, I have written the following for you instead.
Foods for a recent sore throat
You can eat black radish (we have organically grown Spanish Black Radish in pill form, which is the best) or garlic because of its sulfur containing compounds that are generally great for the tonsils. Unless you are allergic to garlic or onions (and many people are without ever knowing it), use them. Onions contain an compound called quercetin which can help re-balance inflammation. Speaking of medicinal foods, add turmeric to whatever you are eating. Turmeric in large amounts tastes terrible, but if you are up to it, just add it to whatever you are eating. The problem with turmeric is that is very hard to absorb when it is used as a spice or eaten as a food. Turmeric is notorious for not being absorbed well.
The natural alternative to eating turmeric is taking it as a supplement. We have a specifically designed turmeric supplement that has absorption of over 20x turmeric powder. Turmeric-forte is a natural remedy that is highly absorbable.
We have a great herbal throat spray that's really worth a try!
Generally, oil of oregano, labeled as meant to be orally consumed, is a top pick for any upper respiratory issues such as a stuffed nose, or scratchy throat, or congestion in the upper lungs and trachea (wind-pipe). If you have the oil, put a few little drops in some olive oil and swig it down. I originated this way of taking it, which is much easier than taking it in water! Taking oil of oregano mixed with water is not pleasant. It has a very spicy bite to its taste. You never knew that oregano had such a kick until you experience oil of oregano. If you don't have oil of oregano handy, you can try making some tea out of the oregano you have in your cupboard. Put at least a tablespoon in a cup of hot water and let it steep. Remember, oregano has a spiciness that you never realized before, so the tea you make may be very spicy tasting, but getting it past your throat can be helpful.
Oregano oil is also generally used to clear out overpopulation of unfriendly bacteria in your gut, so keep this in mind. If you don't want this effect on your gut flora, think twice about using this for more than a two days in a row, as a remedy for your temporary sore throat.
Even in Los Angeles, you should definitely consider getting extra vitamin D when you feel a symptom coming on like a sore throat. Vitamin D3 is the active form of vitamin D. Vitamin D2 is the kind of cheaper form of vitamin D that you don't want to supplement to your diet. D2 is the kind that is put in "vitamin D milk." I recently saw that it was also in the ingredients of a coconut milk product at Trader Joe's. What can you do, complain?
If you believe that you should not be taking extra vitamin D, then get out into the sun. Vitamin D is a key player in helping your immune system regulate itself. You don't want to be low on something like that!
Echinacea is an amazing herb if you can get the real, whole root extract that we have at my office, which makes your tongue tingle. Without the very noticeable tingle, the alkyl-amides (the most important part of the plant) are not present in high enough quantity, or are absent. We have The Best Echinacea in the World, available in our Beverly Hills office. This real-deal echinacea is best used before you even have symptoms. You could take it at the very first nuance that your throat were getting sore, but that's all you should wait. Echinacea is not a cure for colds; it is preventive. It is a food, not a drug.
Don't believe the pure misinformation and myths about echinacea. You can, in fact, take it year round. Echinacea does not "stimulate" your immune system, and it is not necessary to "take a break" from it for any length of time. If you were led to believe those myths, you should know that they came from faulty research. Just so you know, there might be some people who don't do well with echinacea, but we can determine that in my office, with the help of our holistic testing method here in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles.
Other helpful supplements could be Congaplex, Thymex, Zymex, Immuplex, Cyruta-Plus, and Ganoderma-Shitake. These work best with proper guidance. To be sure what your body needs, come get yourself tested. The testing is what we do daily.
We carry specialized supplements that are not sold in regular stores like WholeFoods. One of these is a probiotic that research-supported strains of lactic acid bacteria. It's called ProSynbiotic.
We also have organic chlorella, which helps your body defend against upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) by supporting your body's mucosal immunity. This means that it helps the passage-ways that have a mucous lining, like your sinuses, throat, bronchial tubes, and gastrointestinal tract.
We have an herbal supplement that will break even the most persistent cough, but we don't recommend these over the phone, or for general use. We know when to use these via our detailed initial consultation, exam and in-office kinesiology testing. Make your appointment with us to be personally guided to what you need, but don't call me just to talk about your sore throat.
Foods to avoid with a sore throat
Through my many years of experience, I see that about 50 percent of cases of a sore throat, runny nose, allergies, or persistent cough can be due to toxicity instead of a common cold. Generally, you would be better off avoiding milk products at this time. I might also suggest avoiding bread, or pasta. Some people will need to avoid sugar that is added to, or prepared in any food. White sugar, brown sugar, raw sugar, cane sugar, and high fructose corn syrup are all part of this group of foods to avoid. Some people need to avoid egg whites. The old myth of an egg-white omelet being healthful is an outgrowth of misinformation about lowering cholesterol, started by those MDs who really know very little about nutrition.
Avoid junk fats. These include any hydrogenated oil at all. Avoid partially hydrogenated oils, brominated vegetable oil, any highly heated oil, and any soy oil. Why is soy oil so bad? Soy oil has been heated to over 500 degrees Fahrenheit during its processing. After that, it is no longer a food. Soy and canola oils are largely from genetically modified organisms. These genetically mutated organisms have never been tested for long-term effects on people, yet they are already in our food chain. Avoid GMOs like a lit stick of dynamite on your plate!
The only real way to know what you really need to avoid and what you need to take is to come in and get evaluated. Aside from trial and error, there's no way to be totally sure what food you personally need to avoid, or what natural remedies would be right for you without getting tested.
If you have a chronic sore throat, chronic cough, that doesn't respond to conventional treatments, over the counter medicines, or diet alone, then contact me so that we can set your appointment to start a detailed investigation into the possible multiple causes of your condition. We will be able to systematically address the true causes of why your sore throat, or cough persists the way it does with you. Possibilities could include anything from food intolerance, toxic exposure in Los Angeles, metal toxicity, allergies, common immune system challenges, and even autoimmunity.
Call to get your appointment. 310-282-8882.