Bronchitis Natural Cure

An inflammation of the airways leading to the lungs which results in a persistent cough and considerable amount of phlegm, is the condition known as bronchitis. Usually caused by an infection or allergies, it exhibits symptoms such as sever bouts of coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath and a burning pain below the breastbone. It can be serious to someone who already suffers from asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or any other serious respiratory problems. However, in the case of an average healthy person, bronchitis as an infection just tends to run its course and vanishes on its own. Medical advice is necessary though if an infant contracts the infection. In most other cases though, the following herbal remedies are more than enough to contain and successfully eradicate the infection.

A highly recommended remedy is the use of castor oil plant leaves. Warm the leaves on a flat pan, cool and spread on the chest. Keep them on overnight, but take care not to eat them as the castor oil plant is poisonous. Another effective remedy is a mixture of mustard powder with an equal amount of flour and water. Mix it to form a thick paste and smear on the chest area. Leave it on for at least an hour before washing it off. Since the coughing is due to accumulated phlegm anyway, coughing actually helps heal bronchitis. To achieve this, one can resort to humidifying the environment. A warm or cool mist humidifier should do the trick. Or it can be something as simple as standing in a steamy shower with the door closed or even steaming. This helps loosen the phlegm thus easing its discharge. Gargling with warm water is also very helpful as it soothes the inflammation in the throat due to the coughing. It also helps loosen any mucus that may be coating the throat membranes. Adding a teaspoon of salt to the warm water before gargling will produce even better results.

Drink a lot of fluids however stay off chilled ones though. Maximum benefit can be derived from warm drinks like tea and soups. While drinking plain water too, ensure that it is at least lukewarm. The use of pain killers to relieve the accompanying chest pain is not advised unless the pain is unbearable. With cough syrups too, follow the same principle. Drinking fresh cabbage juice everyday also provides considerable succor. Another effective remedy is mixing half a teaspoon of licorice root tea in a cup of water. Strain the mixture after ten minutes and drink thrice a day to heal bronchitis effectively.