A sore throat is a painful, scratchy, or irritated feeling in the throat that often worsens when you swallow. The most common cause of a sore throat is a viral infection, such as a cold or the flu. Other causes of a sore throat include bacterial infections, allergies, dryness, and irritants such as outdoor air pollution, tobacco smoke, or chemicals. Some of the more serious causes of sore throat include tonsillitis, strep throat, and mononucleosis. Symptoms of a sore throat may include fever, headache, white spots on your throat or tonsils, red and swollen tonsils, swollen glands in your neck, and skin rash. To soothe a sore throat, you can drink warm liquids such as tea with honey or lemon, gargle with warm salt water, sleep with a cool-mist vaporizer, suck on cough drops or lozenges, and take over-the-counter pain relievers. If your sore throat lasts longer than a week, gets worse, or you develop symptoms like fever or swollen lymph nodes, you should contact a healthcare provider.