Home remedies for a cough

Persistent coughing can be debilitating for you. Constant coughing can cause aches in your chest muscles and impede your normal life. Read on to know about the various forms of cough treatment which are simple to administer.

Staying hydrated: Do you know that drinking lots of water and other fluids can help you overcome continuous bouts of coughing? When there is an upper respiratory tract infection like cold or flu, it causes excess secretion of postnasal fluids. These drips or fluids cause irritation at the back of your throat and cause coughing. When you drink lots of water and other fluids, it helps in thinning out the mucus in the postnasal fluids. Having adequate water and other fluids also moisturizes the mucous membrane which helps in keeping cough under control.

Hot Drinks and Lozenges: Another line of treatment is having hot drinks and lozenges. Lozenges numb the back of the throat thus suppressing coughs. Having hot coffee or tea also soothes the throat. The effect is magnified if some honey is added to your hot tea or coffee.

Taking a steamy shower: Many doctors advise their patients about taking a steamy shower to treat cough and cold. Doing so releases the secretions from the nose and this, in turn, helps ease cough from not only colds but also allergies.

Using humidifiers: The dry air inside your house may cause your nasal secretions to go dry. In such a case, use a humidifier that adds moisture to the air inside. This can help your cough but do not over humidify your air. Doctors advise that regular cleaning of the humidifier keeps viruses and bacteria away from your nose.

Get rid of irritants from the air: Do you know that perfume and spray particles can also cause cough? These substances cause extra mucus secretion that triggers coughing. This can be prevented by avoiding the use of perfumes and sprays in your bathroom or in the rest of the house. Cough is also caused by smoking. Avoiding smoking not only protects you from many respiratory diseases but also keeps lung cancer at bay.

If the above treatments don’t help you, then it is time to take the following medications.
Decongestants: These relieve your cough by shrinking the nasal tissue and reducing mucus production. Decongestants also remove the mucus from the lungs and clear up the airway passages. Don’t use these for more than 3-4 days else, they may cause rebound congestion.
Expectorants: If your cough is giving you a bad night then use expectorants. This medicine thins out the mucus which can easily be coughed out. Expectorants work best during nights. Doctors advise against administering this remedy to children below 4 years.

If you are having cough for more than a week, you must see a doctor.

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