1. Cold dry air
Try to avoid breathing cold air through your mouth, as this air will dry out the mucus membranes of your vocal tract. Dry vocal cords will make it difficult for you to sing with ease and can result in strain if you force the cords to operate the way you’re used to. And by the way, your Mom was right…wear a scarf!

2. Central heating
Dust accumulates in the central heating ducts during the summer. So when the heaters start up in the fall, you guessed it: dust gets blown out of the vents and into your throat! If you’re waking up in the morning with a dry sore throat, try sleeping with a humidifier in the room. Or put a bowl of water on the night stand.

3. Flu
Aside from the obvious dangers we’re hearing about in the news, the flu can knock your voice out for days or weeks. Coughing and clearing the throat are very abusive to the vocal folds. Not to mention sore throats and post-nasal drip.

The best advice is of course not to get sick in the first place. Drink 2 litres of water per day to stay hydrated, get lots of sleep (also good for the voice), and wash your hands regularly.

Even if you do all this and take your immunity boosters, sometimes we just can’t avoid getting sick. I have two walking petri dishes (otherwise known as children) in my house. Drink more than 2 litres of water to help your voice recover. This will also help thin out the mucus on your vocal cords so you avoid the “thick” feeling that causes many to clear their throat or cough.

Be sure to check my article Lost Your Voice? for tips on how to bring your voice back after illness.

4. Caffeine
I’ll admit I love sipping an americano coffee to warm up from the cold, but caffeine dries out the vocal folds. Avoid caffeinated drinks like coffee, tea, or soft drinks before singing. And if you choose to indulge, drink one glass of water for every cup of coffee to avoid dehydration. This goes for alcohol too during holiday party season.

5. Cold medications
Antihistamines or decongestants are commonly found in cold or allergy medications. These also can have a drying effect on the throat. When possible look for non-drying formulas or drink extra water to avoid dehydration of the vocal apparatus.

6. “Throat remedies”
There is nothing you can drink or eat that will directly soothe or coat your vocal cords. If they did, you would drown or choke in the process…which I’m thinking would be a bad side-effect. So drinking hot lemon with honey may feel good on the back of your throat, but it will not soothe your vocal cords. It won’t even touch them! To the contrary, too much citric acid from the lemon could strip the good layers of mucus in your throat and cause an over-production of mucus.

Stick with water, and remember that it can take 3 hours or longer for the water you’re drinking to be absorbed into your body and travel to the vocal cords.

Don’t bother with menthol lozenges either. These can have a drying effect.

7. Holiday parties
Before you yell “Scrooge!” just hear me out: parties can be great fun and KILL your voice in the process! Be careful when speaking around large crowds or loud music. You may be tempted to push your voice to be heard over the Jingle Bell rock and wind up hoarse in the morning. Not to mention second-hand smoke.

Alcohol and eating late at night can also exacerbate acid reflux or GERD (Gastoesophageal Reflux Disease.) This is when stomach acids come back up while we sleep, irritating the throat and laryngeal tissues.

Reflux is probably the #1 secret voice killer because most singers that have it don’t even realize it. If you consistently wake up with hoarseness, sore thoats, or an acidic taste in your mouth, see your doctor.