If you have ever suffered from any kind of throat infection, you know how painful they can be. While a cold will often cause a sore throat for a day or two and then move on to symptoms such as runny nose and cough, strep throat will persist, often causing severe pain and usually requiring antibiotics.

Tonsillitis can be caused by the same bacteria that causes strep throat; Streptococcus, or by other bacterial or viral infections. Tonsillitis results in the tonsils at the back of the throat to becoming enlarged and painful. Although strep throat and tonsillitis can happen simultaneously (with the streptococcus bacterium), you can also have one without the other.

Strep Throat
Symptoms of strep throat include sudden onset, fever, loss of appetite (due to painful swallowing), red tonsils with white spots (not necessary enlarged, but often very red or even purple). Strep throat is most common in children ages 5-13, although it does occur in adults. Strep throat is contagious and can be spread via close contact with an infected person.

Contact your healthcare provider if you fear you or your child may have strep throat. It does warrant medical attention, as there can be serious side effects, including rheumatic fever. Rheumatic fever can damage the heart valves and have potentially serious repercussions. Treatment of strep throat often includes antibiotics, such as penicillin or amoxicillin. It is not advised to give persons under the age of 18 Aspirin to ease pain or calm a fever for fear of Reye's syndrome, a disorder that can cause brain damage and even death, in some cases.

Tonsillitis
What is most commonly referred to as 'the tonsils' are actually one set of tonsils called the palantine tonsils, which sit at the back of the throat. Oddly enough, the tonsils are a lymphatic tissue and meant to fight infection, being one of our first lines of defense against ingested or inhaled foreign pathogens. Unfortunately, this does not mean that they cannot become infected themselves.

In the past, a tonsillectomy (a procedure which involved the removal of the tonsils) was a fairly routine procedure for anyone who was prone to tonsillitis or an inflammation of the tonsils, often not responding to traditional medications.
Nowadays tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy are much less common, but still performed in severe or stubborn and chronic cases, where there is a lot of pain associated with infection, or in cases of severe sleep apnea due to enlarged tonsils or adenoids. If the infection is bacterial, tonsillitis can be treated with antibiotics. In many cases the infection is viral and self limited. Anti-inflammatories, such as ibuprofen, are all that are often recommended in these cases.

Symptoms of tonsillitis include: white or yellow spots on the swollen tonsils, bad breath, voice changes due to swelling, fever, painful swallowing and swollen lymph nodes in the neck.

What can you do?
In general, whether sore throat is due to cold, strep throat or tonsillitis, there are some very simple lifestyle tips that can help to speed up the course of the infection and get you feeling healthier, faster!

As much as it may hurt to swallow, make sure to drink plenty of liquids. Keep in mind that refined sugar depresses the immune system, so try to stick to water and pure fruit juices. Foods such as soups, broths and smoothies can help to provide the nutrition you need, while still soothing the throat. Try to stay away from dairy as much as you can. Dairy is mucous forming and may only exacerbate the issue. Gargle with salt water multiple times throughout the day, it will help to dry things out and decrease pain and inflammation. Get plenty of rest. Chances are that your immune system was run down by the time the symptoms developed, perhaps from fighting the infection off as long as it could. Give your immune system a chance to recuperate and fight back. Make sure to sleep as much as you can while you are recovering. It will boost energy and help to decrease the course of the infection.

Supplements
There are also a variety of supplements you can take for an acute or chronic infection, each tailored toward either a viral or bacterial infection, although some of these suggestion have both anti-viral and anti-bacterial properties. Elderberry, goldenseal, astragalus, andrographis and garlic are all great choices for anti-viral/anti-bacterial herbal remedies that have been proven to shorten the course of the infection and get you feeling better faster. An herbal throat spray, containing zinc or any combination of the herbs mentioned above, can also help to alleviate sore throat quickly to help ease the pain associated with swallowing. If antibiotics are prescribed, remember to take a probiotic either during or following antibiotic treatment. This ensures that you are protecting and replenishing the 'healthy' gut flora, which in turn means you are helping to support the immune system, along with healthy and happy digestion.