First signs of a sore throat?
Photo by Paulina H. on Unsplash
This simple, inexpensive & quick solution will stop it right away: Sage
Sage not only refines dishes such as saltimbocca — the tart herb with an intense fragrance also has a beneficial effect on your health and a soothing effect on sore throats, and helps with gingivitis and aphthae in the mouth.
Saltimbocca, pasta with sage butter — some recipes are hardly imaginable without sage. But in addition to its culinary values, the tart herb also has actual health power to offer.
For such a healthy tea, pour about 200 milliliters of boiling water over one to two grams of sage leaves and let it steep for ten minutes.
What to consider when using sage
Due to its versatile applications, Sage has been part of Europe's medicinal treasure trove for centuries. Sage contains many essential oils (including thujone, camphor, and cineole) and many tannins, flavonoids, triterpenes, and steroids. This mix makes the furry leaves particularly healthy. The essential oil and tannins contained in the plant reduce inflammation and promote its rapid healing. The tannins especially lead to an irritation relief of the mucous membranes. Due to additionally proven antibacterial and antiviral effects, gingivitis and aphthae in the mouth are effectively treated. Sage is particularly recommended for sore throats.
Gargled several times a day, sage infusion significantly improves inflamed and painful mucous membranes in the throat and pharynx.
In addition, sage stimulates the production of gastric juices through contained bitter substances and helps with digestive complaints and flatulence (drink a cup half an hour before each meal).
Preparations of sage also work wonders for night sweats (drink a cup of cold tea two hours before going to bed) and when sweating. This is why it is especially recommended for women going through menopause.
Good to know:
The essential oil of sage contains thujone, which in high daily doses of more than 15 g of sage leaves, can lead to a feeling of heat, palpitations, and dizziness.
However, daily doses of up to 4 g of sage leaves and use as a rinse or gargle are safe.
For long-term use, thujone-free sage extracts are also now available.
Quick homemade: tea and tincture
For sore throats and inflammation of the mouth and throat, one teaspoon (1 g) of the dried leaves per cup should be prepared as tea and gargled three times daily.
You can also use sage tincture for this purpose. Dilute 20 drops of it in half a glass of water and gargle thrice daily.
Botanical profile of sage (Salvia officinalis L. & Salvia fruticosa Mill.)
Two species of sage are used medicinally: True (Dalmatian) sage, originally from the Croatian coasts, and Three-lobed (Greek) sage from Greece and Cyprus.
Nowadays, these two aromatic, fragrant half-shrubs are grown almost on all continents for medicinal and culinary purposes. In contrast to the true sage, the three-lobed sage has a more pronounced secondary pinnae at the base of the leaves, resulting in a three-lobed structure of the leaves. Only the true sage can be cultivated in our latitudes, as the three-lobed sage is not winter-hardy.
