Letters from A Vocal Coach: How to Maintain a Healthy Throat

One of the most frequently asked questions my students throw at me is... "how do I look after my throat?" Well, I'm going to begin by telling you what you SHOULDN'T do, and then I'll fill you in on HOW to preserve your voice and what supplements to take to maintain a healthy throat.

DON'T smoke. DON'T take recreational drugs. DON'T booze excessively. It practically destroys the voice (Want proof to all of the above? Look at Whitney Houston towards the end of her life!). DON'T drink ice cold drinks. They interfere with the vocal chords. DON'T scream and shout when you're out on the town partying. You'll have lost your voice the next day and if you don't know how to fix the problem (as I will show you later in this article), you'll have a croaky voice lingering on for longer than you'd want. And here's a message to those of you who go to the beach to practice singing by yelling your lungs out. DON'T do it! This is the fastest way to ruin your voice completely. Now let's take a look at what you CAN do to preserve your voice.

1000 MILLIGRAMS VITAMIN C

I'll begin with a quick remedy tip for putting a stop to flu symptoms, including a tired sore throat from overuse. Simply pop a 1000 milligram vitamin C effervescent tablet into a glass of water and drink up. If you're in a really bad way, pop up to 3000 milligrams over the course of the day. I regularly take vitamin C once a day. Especially when I'm using my voice a lot (teaching), and when I have concerts lined up. Vitamin C protects me. Always!

VITAMINS & MINERALS

Let's take a look at the whole body approach for a minute. You need to keep your immune system working optimally. And the quickest way to do that is to ensure that you're taking vitamins and minerals to stay healthy. I take Super Potency Megavites (or if you'd prefer liquid vitamins, Veriuni Advanced Liquid Nutrition  is superb AND delicious!). And to add to that arsenal, I also take Super Antioxidant Formula. And I'm going to ask you a quick question. Would you like to have smooth, flawless skin? Well, Super Seven Skin Support works for me! Honest.This helps fight free radicals that, well, slowly but surely, destroy the body . So there you have it! In a nutshell, what-to-do and what-not-to-do to maintain a healthy throat. For access to the full Health & Wellness department click here!

DRINK WATER

Keeping the vocal folds moist through good hydration is very important for good voice health. We can provide moisture to the vocal folds by drinking water. It is highly recommended that you drink at least 2 liters of water a day. And when you're singing, it's advisable to have a bottle of water handy.

To find more handy singing articles on this blog, run a search for Singing Lessons as well as Letters from a Vocal Coach.

You are the instrument, learn to sing like a pro!

JOETT
Vocal Coach

Download Joett tracks from iTunes, Amazon MP3, TuneCore.
Buy Joett CDs from A Novel Idea Bookstores Dar, Zanzibar, Arusha.
Nationwide CD distribution via Joett Music (Airtel Money, TIGO Money, M-Pesa).
Follow me on Twitter
Become a fan on Facebook 
Follow Joett On Facebook