1. Butt Out
Smoking is the number-one preventable cause of laryngitis. This relatively common irritation of your vocal cords can happen three ways: through overuse, infection or irritation. Cigarette smoke is a severe throat irritant, and it also drains moisture from your vocal cords. Thus, when you smoke, you're exposing yourself to a double whammy. Not only are you increasing your likelihood of contracting laryngitis, but you also risk making it more severe by drying out your throat.
2. Stay Hydrated
You can prevent the fluids in your mouth from thickening up by drinking plenty of fluids, especially water. This will help to head off the strain you'll place on your vocal cords if you have to clear your throat of thick mucus too frequently. Also, plenty of fluid intake ensures that the tissues in your vocal cords will retain their moisture. If you're under-hydrated, they can dry out and become prone to irritation and infection, which can cause your voice to turn scratchy.
3. Don't Clear Your Throat
To avoid irritating your vocal cords, you should refrain from clearing your throat as much as possible. Clearing your throat makes your vocal cords vibrate in an unnatural way, which can exacerbate any swelling already present and worsen any extant throat infection or irritation. Also, it causes your throat to produce more mucus. In other words, the more you clear your throat, the more you'll have to and the more you'll irritate it.
4. Safeguard Against Common Respiratory Infections
The common cold can lead to laryngitis, so you should take basic precautions to avoid unnecessary contact with people who have one. Avoid direct skin-to-skin contact with cold sufferers and practice diligent hand-washing, especially during cold season.
You can also get a flu shot, which will drastically reduce your chances of contracting the influenza virus. Both the common cold and flu are upper respiratory infections, and laryngitis is a potential complication of both conditions.
