Strepsils Honey & Lemon 8

Strepsils is the benchmark medicated throat lozenge: the antiseptic pair amylmetacresol and dichlorobenzyl alcohol in a slowly dissolving base. Randomised trials show these lozenges relieve sore throat pain measurably better than non-medicated sweets, and later work found a genuine mild local anaesthetic action alongside the antiseptic effect. The dissolving base and stimulated saliva bathe and lubricate the raw pharynx continuously, which is most of what any sore throat, viral as they usually are, actually needs. Honey and lemon 8 is the classic flavour in the pocket size, the one that starts most Strepsils relationships.

A sore throat wants continuous local relief, not a swallowed pill. The world's most-trialled lozenge, repeatable every few hours, is the practical answer for talking, swallowing and getting through the day. The discipline of sucking a lozenge also enforces the rest a shouting-strained voice actually needs, which no swallowed medicine does.