Home Remedies for Cough

Common cough is one of the most common ailments of children. It is due to a response to an irritating inflammation or the presence of mucus in the respiratory tract. Cough is a defensive reflex that helps clear our breathing passages from irritants, microbes and foreign particles. Allergic reaction from tobacco or industrial smoke or dust may also trigger coughing, it could happen voluntarily as well as involuntarily.

Cough can affect your child’s appetite, rest, attitude and performance. Finding the right treatment for your child may be difficult but here are some tips that may help you and your child feel better about their cough.

Steam – Inhaling steam may help in loosening up the clogged phlegm that causes coughs.

Soup and Hot Drinks – Tea made with a tablespoon of honey, juice from half a lemon, and warm water is not only refreshing and tasty, it also helps in clearing throats of unwanted virus and bacteria. Liquid flushes out toxins from the body and are crucial to recovery and they provide extra benefits. (Hot drinks can ease away the early symptoms of cough and cold.) Boil three to four cloves of garlic in a cup of water (oil contained in garlic can help open the respiratory passages).

Brandy – Mix one tsp of brandy and one tsp of honey. Mix it together and drink at least twice a day.

Ginger powder – Place a tsp of dried ginger powder into a glass of clean distilled water. Boil the mixture until the water in the glass becomes half in measure. Drain the supernatant water and have your child drink 2 tsp of the water twice a day.

Water therapy – Have your child drink plenty of liquid, this would help clear the blockage of phlegm.

Massage – First, gently massage warmed coconut oil over your child’s chest area for around 5 minutes. Next, apply the same procedure on your child’s upper back portion. This simple treatment will soothe the child and will keep the cough away and will also help in getting a good undisturbed sleep.

Lozenges – are also available in almost all drugstores. They can help in the production and stimulation of saliva therefore soothing the throat.

Prevention is always better than cure. Train your child to have good clean hygiene. Teach them how to thoroughly wash their hands. Hand sanitizes may also be used, they are not only convenient. A little dab will kill 99.99% of germs without any water or towels. Wash your child’s sleeping mats once a week to avoid accumulation of potentially harmful bacteria. Avoid contact with children who has cough, and when your child already has cough. Teach them to cover their mouth when they cough or sneeze.