Is it okay to eat lemon when your throat hurts?

Very often in the cold season, sore throat occurs. The first thing to do in such a situation is to find out the cause of the symptom. After all, bacteria, viruses and other irritants can be the culprits causing pain in the head. However, regardless of the type of infection and the prescribed treatment, lemon is used to relieve symptoms and a speedy recovery from pain in the throat.

Sore throat relief

A person with nasopharyngeal pain rarely needs emergency help. However, there are several situations where pain can have serious consequences that require immediate medical attention:

the sore throat is so severe that it is impossible to swallow saliva;
swelling of the larynx prevents full breathing.

You should also take a sore throat more seriously if:

symptoms last longer than three days;
the disease goes away with a sharp rise in temperature;
when examining the throat, a purulent plaque on the tonsils or purulent plugs is visible;
there is a significant increase in the cervical and axillary lymph nodes;
there is pain when moving the jaw.

In all of the above situations, you should not self-medicate, you must immediately consult a doctor.

If the condition is limited to a sore throat and a slight deterioration in well-being, you can try to relieve symptoms using traditional medicine. Lemon is a good treatment. This remedy is not only considered a storehouse of vitamins, but also has a beneficial effect on overall well-being and relieves symptoms. In addition to using lemon in the event of pain in the throat as a first aid, it is advisable to adhere to the following recommendations:

breathe correctly, inhaling through the nose;
protect the ligaments;
drink more fluids;
paradoxically, but with sore throats, it is allowed and even shown to eat ice cream and other cool delicacies;
gargle;
monitor the humidity in the room, not allowing the nasal mucous membranes to dry out;
do not smoke and exclude the use of other irritating substances.

Lemon for sore throat

Let's talk in more detail about whether lemon is effective for a sore throat and can it be eaten in this case? It is known that this product is very popular among patients in the treatment of diseases of the nasopharynx, because it is able to provide not only an analgesic effect, but also to lower body temperature. A similar effect is achieved due to the content of vitamin C in lemon fruits, which has an antiviral and immunostimulating effect. Lemons also contain a large number of other substances, for example, flavonoids and essential oils, which can positively affect the irritated larynx surface.

The high citric and malic acid content also helps to heal a sore throat by providing pain relief, as well as creating an unfavorable environment for the growth and development of pathogenic microorganisms.

For any type of throat disease, lemon will be simply an irreplaceable product that strengthens the immune system and reduces local pain, contributing to a speedy recovery.

However, despite the benefits of lemon in the treatment of diseases of the nasopharynx, it is necessary to highlight contraindications to its use.

Sometimes, when using lemon, there are unpleasant sensations in the nasopharynx, pain may increase. The fact is that lemon can irritate the damaged pharyngeal mucosa. If such symptoms occur, it is necessary to abandon the lemon treatment.
Also, in order to avoid a possible worsening of the course of the disease, lemon therapy is contraindicated in children under the age of five, especially in the treatment of acute tonsillitis.
Allergy to citrus fruits, individual intolerance to lemon, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, peptic ulcer - all these are contraindications to the use of lemon in the treatment of throat diseases.

Lemon cure - recipes

When using lemon in traditional medicine recipes, it is necessary to use the fruit along with the peel, since it is it that contains a large amount of nutrients, much more than the pulp. There are several ways to use lemon, after which the patient may feel much better.

Important! Before using lemon, make sure that there is no individual intolerance.

So, if the disease is at an initial stage, then you can use lemon in small portions along with the zest. After that, you need to take an hour break, while not eating or drinking.
Slowly dissolving lemon wedges throughout the day can also be beneficial in treating sore throats. You should try to place lemon wedges as close to the throat as possible in order to maximize the effect on the affected surface.
If the lemon is so sour that you cannot consume it, sprinkle a little sugar on the wedges and use in the same way as suggested above.
Lemon juice can be used to rinse. To do this, take half a glass of warm boiled water and add two tablespoons of lemon juice. I use the resulting solution for rinsing four times a day, the duration of one procedure should not be at least a minute.
Lemon juice can also be used to lubricate the tonsils. For this, honey is added to the squeezed juice in a ratio of 1: 2. For people with hypersensitivity to lemon juice, the amount of concentrate can be reduced. The surface of the tonsils is lubricated three times a day with a cotton swab. This mixture is also used as an antiseptic, dissolving honey with lemon five to six times a day.
A solution of lemon juice in water can have a tonic effect on the entire body. For preparation, take one part of juice and three parts of water, mix and boil for a minute. After cooling down, use 5 ml of the solution four times a day until the symptoms disappear completely.
The infusion of pharmacy chamomile with lemon also has a good antiseptic and tonic effect. To prepare such tea, take a tablespoon of dried chamomile in a glass of hot water, add a slice of lemon to the resulting broth. Drink this tea slowly, at least three times a day.
A good recipe that can be used even for children is gruel made from crushed lemon with honey. To prepare it, the fruit, together with the peel, are ground with a blender, honey is added to taste and one teaspoon is given three times a day until the symptoms disappear completely.

This sore throat treatment with lemon will help to significantly reduce unpleasant symptoms, as well as lower body temperature.

Contraindications

Often, pain in the nasopharynx can be so strong that the patient does not eat, drinks with difficulty and practically does not speak. In such a situation, it is important not only to start the correct treatment, but also not to harm by eating food prohibited for throat ailments.

So, the ban includes:

Chewing gum, any sweet food, sugar candies without antiseptic, sugary drinks. The reason for this lies in the high sugar content, which can settle on the walls of the pharynx, creating favorable conditions for the development of pathogens. Therefore, during illness, even after drinking tea with sugar, you must thoroughly rinse your throat.
Foods with strong flavors, including fried, salty, sour, and spicy foods.Despite the fact that often the treatment of throat diseases and other infections is based precisely on the use of foods such as garlic and lemon, caution must be exercised here. You need to use this kind of products little by little, adding to food. For example, lemon can be squeezed into tea.

Eating foods with a pronounced taste can not only aggravate the condition of a sore throat, but also cause swelling of the mucous membrane.

During the treatment of various diseases of the nasopharynx, the use of a large amount of liquid is indicated. However, sour, carbonated, overly hot drinks must be excluded from this list. For example, hot drinks not only have a positive effect, warming the body, but can also burn the throat, complicating the disease and its main symptoms. When treating your throat, it is best to opt for neutral or alkaline drinks.
To restore the strength spent by the body in the process of illness, you need good nutrition. However, for the duration of the illness, coarse cereals, hard bread, crackers and other tough foods should be abandoned, the use of which can irritate the mucous membrane of an already sore throat.
If the lemon is not at hand, then when treating the throat, you cannot replace it with citric acid, since it does not contain vitamins and other useful substances that are contained in the fruit, the only similarity is the presence of citric acid. The powder, prepared on an industrial scale, is made from substances containing carcinogens.