Is a sore throat getting you down? Pesky viruses can cause throat inflammation and coughs that last far too long. The good news is that you need to look no further than your backyard herb garden for a natural remedy that works: sage candy.
Sage is the classic medicinal herb used to fight sore throats and gum inflammation, and to treat the inside of the mouth or the throat. It fights the pathogens that cause illness and quickly soothes pain.
This comes to us straight from Melanie Wenzel, the author of The Essential Guide to Home Herbal Remedies: Easy Recipes Using Medicinal Herbs to Treat More Than 125 Conditions from Sunburns to Sore Throats. Melanie joins us today to share her all-natural recipe for sage candies.
When to Use It: For sore throats.
How to Use It: If you have a sore throat, suck on a sage candy several times a day.
Shelf Life: The candy will keep for at least 1 year in an airtight container.
You Will Need:
- Sharp knife
- Cutting board
- Mortar and pestle (optional)
- Small saucepan
- Wooden spoon
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- 10 sprigs fresh sage (or 0.18 oz/5 g dried sage)
- 3.5 oz granulated sugar (100g)
TIP: Ricola, the cough drop company, makes a sage candy with similar properties. Look for it at drugstores or online retailers.
How to Make It:
- Briefly rinse fresh sage under cold water, then lightly pat dry with paper towels. Pull leaves off seems. Using a sharp knife and a rutting board, chop sage leaves as finely as possible. (If you are using dried sage, don’t rinse it, and grind it using a mortar and pestle.)
- In a small saucepan, melt sugar over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Continue stirring until the sugar is light brown. Stir the sage into the sugar. Be careful: The water contained in the fresh sage leaves will make the mixture sizzle, bubble and spit. Making this candy is, therefore, not a job for children.
- Take the saucepan off the heat. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a wooden spoon, drop candy-size portions of herb mixture onto the paper. Be careful: The sugar mixture is hotter than boiling water! If you don’t like the shape of the candy, let the drops cool enough to handle, then, using your hands, roll them into balls.
More and more people are returning to the centuries-old tradition of herbal medicine. After all, nature offers just as many effective remedies today as it did in times past. These remedies are successful at treating all sorts of illnesses—as well as the unpleasant side effects of modern life, including stress, exhaustion and listlessness. Even scientists have acknowledged that herbal medicine possesses an array of healing powers.
For generations, our ancestors simply used active ingredients directly from nature if they wanted to prevent a disease or treat its symptoms. They dried herbs for tisanes, mixed ointments, made macerations and infusions, or preserved the valuable components of medicinal herbs in other ways. Today, however, most of us rely on manufactured drugs, even though many people would actually prefer to combat ailments using natural remedies. Unfortunately, they no longer know how to make them.
The back-to-nature movement has been able to gain ground not least because today’s consumers are seriously interested in natural, gentle medical treatments. In 2010, a German survey on natural remedies showed that nearly 50% of people are convinced that these remedies work. They trust in nature’s healing powers for a whole host of complaints, but especially for colds, gastric illnesses, insomnia, digestive problems and headaches.
Accordingly, they increasingly use plant-based products to complement other treatments. (The eternal conflict between conventional and natural medicines seems to be resolved at last.) Last, but not least, there is a small bonus: Natural products are often less expensive than “normal” medicines—and sometimes they even cost nothing at all. And, they are so easy to make at home.
MELANIE WENZEL lives in Germany, where she practices classical homeopathy. She regularly appears as a homeopathic expert on television and radio, where she shares tips on gentle and natural prescriptions to bring relief for minor ailments.
Courtesy of THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO HOME HERBAL REMEDIES: Easy Recipes Using Medicinal Herbs to Treat More Than 125 Conditions from Sunburns to Sore Throats by Melanie Wenzel 2014 © www.robertrose.ca Reprinted with publisher permission. Available where books are sold.
Good idea but I would honey, so many more healing properties than white sugar… thanks for posting!
Yes, great idea, Suzanne!
Suzanne I was thinking the same thing yet also wondering if same amount used?
Please call me I need help getting white sage. My number is 575.758.4512
According to the NIH and WebMD there is not sufficient evidence to support the claim that sage relieves a sore throat.
See:
https://nccih.nih.gov/health/sage#science
and
http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-504-SAGE.aspx?activeIngredientId=504&activeIngredientName=SAGE
Thank you for your feedback. The articles read “Sage has not been well studied as a treatment for sore throat”. Perhaps, it is not studied because the possible negative effects of using sage to treat a sore throat are non-existent? Funding a study with a presumed safe home remedy is not likely much or a priority. People have been using herbs as natural remedies for many years and they certainly aren’t for everyone. Personally, my life was changed completely by going back-to-basics with gardening, homegrown food, real ingredients in recipes, and natural beauty products. I would much rather use a sage candy than a lozenge purchased at a pharmacy because at least I know one of them will do me no harm. It’s all personal choice and really, if the worst that will happen is that it doesn’t work, I’ll take that risk.
Homemade candies!! And I believe they’re good for sore throats. Why would they not be? Sage is an herb and herbs can help heal. I saw the comment about WebMD but….so? Herbs can be so useful and it’s not like fixing a sore throat is hard science.