How To Take Care Of Your Vocal Cords
- July 27, 2010
- 22,576 Views
Contributor
ShannonH
If you’re lucky enough to have a great voice, be smart about taking care of it.
You Will Need
- Water
- Slippery-elm lozenges
- A humidifier
- Marshmallow-root or licorice tea
- Salt
- Baking soda
Step 1: Drink water
Drink lots of water. Singers need more water than the average person in order to keep the vocal cords and the mucous membranes surrounding them moist. Aim for eight to 10 glasses every day.
Always drink water at room temperature; cold water can damage vocal cords.
Step 2: Warm up
Warm up your vocal cords frequently. Just as a pitcher needs to warm up his arm before taking the mound, a singer needs to loosen up his vocal cords to keep them in optimal shape. Just don’t overdo it.
Step 3: Limit dairy
Limit dairy products, which can cause mucus to build up in the throat, leading to irritation.
Resist the urge to clear your throat; doing so causes the folds of the throat to slam together, causing irritation.
Step 4: Take slippery elm
Take the herb slippery elm, which singers discovered more than a century ago was a good way to coat the throat and soothe tired vocal cords after a performance. Slippery-elm lozenges are available in health-food stores.
Whispering to save your voice? Don’t! Studies show whispering actually makes your vocal cords work thirty percent harder.
Step 5: Turn off the AC
Turn off the AC. It can dry out the air—and your vocal cords!
Step 6: Use a humidifier
Sleep with a humidifier by your bed, especially before an audition or performance: vocal cords work best when moist. In fact, you need to keep the surface of the cords slippery enough to vibrate up to 1700 times per second!
Steam your throat regularly by holding your head over a pot of hot water, covering your head with a towel, and inhaling deeply.
Step 7: Sip hot tea
Sip hot tea, especially marshmallow-root or licorice tea. Both contain mucilage, which has been proven to coat the throat and soothe vocal cords. Drink it preventively and for relief when you get a sore throat.
Don’t add lemon to hot tea. It can be drying.
Step 8: Gargle
Gargle with a mixture of warm salt water and a quarter-teaspoon of baking soda to help keep the vocal cords moist.
Gargle in a high pitch; it forces your cords to contract, making gargling more effective.
Step 9: Limit alcohol and caffeine
Limit alcohol and caffeine, which can be drying to vocal cords. And if you have a cough or cold, avoid antihistamines and menthol cough drops, which dry out and irritate vocal cords.
Like a fingerprint, every person has a unique “vocal print” that belongs only to him.
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Comments (7)
I'm sorry, but I'm at university for vocal performance, and most of this information is incorrect. Liquids you drink NEVER come into direct contact with your vocal chords (if you look up a diagram of the throat you'll see it), so the tips about no dairy, gargling, and cold water are all totally untrue. Gargling will help you if your throat is sore, but it won't even get near your vocal chords. Your chords don't get any hydration for 24 hours after you drink water, so the only way to hydrate them is to drink water the day before.
over 2 years ago by Hannah_E_Marks
actually hannah this information is very good, i've been having speech therapy and have been to hospital about my throat and was given all the same info as given here and it has worked brilliantly.
about 1 year ago by leah1234
Sorry, Hannah, but perhaps you did not read the information carefully enough. The recommendation was to drink water everyday, not just the day of a performance. This hydrates the entire body including the vocal chords. And the dairy thing--research and practical experience tells us that ingesting diary products causes mucus to form in the bodies of many people. It is noticeable primarily in the sinuses and chest. The mucus from the sinuses causes post-nasal drip which, of course, causes mucus in the throat. A mucusy body can't be good for vocal performances but it has nothing to do with the milk not coming in contact with the vocal chords. SS
about 1 year ago by shirleyjkoch
Hey there Hannah, most of what you posted is certainly correct, But, like Shirley reiterated...... most of all the tips are focusing on the daily maintenance of the body ( i.e.... drink 8 glasses of water daily, do this and do that daily..... ) so, You're not wrong about the anatomy of the vocal cords, but that's not what this GOOD advice seems to be focused on......
about 1 year ago by shonuff07
Excellent, this will help when I begin my voice acting career!
over 3 years ago by mind_f1ow
This page was very informative, some of the things I knew, and other parts I didn't. I am very grateful to be able to use my gift, It is my passion singing. I promise to really take better care of my voice. Thanks again for the info.
over 3 years ago by angelabell
i'm in a band, and i need this. i'm a guitarist and singer.
about 1 year ago by afroninja1100
Can someone please answer my question, I enjoy singing a lot I practise everyday but yet people say that alcohol can ruin your voice, I understand it can ruin your voice either on the day or a day after drinking as it dries up the throat, but what I'm wondering is can it affect you long term i.e make your vocal talent weaker than before ?
6 months ago by Taylor_Chavira
what if you do death metal?
5 months ago by Joseph_Telles
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