Cough Home Remedies
A Cough is a reflex action to clear you airways of mucus or some irritant. However, the term has also come to mean an illness that causes you to cough. A cough is usually caused by an infection but it is also a symptom of other conditions such as asthma, cold, and bronchitis, among others. For symptomatic relief of cough, there are a number of home remedies available.
If you have an infection, you could try gargling with water and salt. Salt helps draw out the fluid in which the virus or bacteria survive, and therefore leaves no room for them to multiply. Thus, the infection starts to alleviate, and any pain or inflammation from the infection will reduce as well.
A fantastic natural remedy for symptomatic relief of cough is to drink warm water with a couple of spoons of lime juice. Warm water provides a soothing effect for your throat. This is because the water helps lubricate the throat and wash the infection away, while the heat provides a relaxing feeling. Lime is a natural antiseptic agent and is therefore effective to fight throat infections.
You could also have one to two spoons of honey mixed with ginger every day. Honey stops your throat from feeling dry, and therefore helps relieve any irritation or scratchy feeling. Ginger has a very strong taste and usually upon consuming it, the reflex to cough is suppressed for some time. You could add a pinch of turmeric powder to this mixture as turmeric powder is an antiseptic and a natural painkiller.
Eating grapes is helpful, as it is natural expectorant and helps to dissolve thick mucus. Thus, it is used to help relieve respiratory difficulties. Pepper also helps loosen mucus, and is often useful for quick relief.
Eating sage should reduce any infection from viruses given its anti-viral properties. Chewing garlic pods will help against bacterial throat infections, as garlic contains, allicin, a chemical that kills bacteria.
An old natural remedy for a cough is to have a steam inhalation with water that contains a Eucalyptus Sprig. This is said to provide instant relief as it opens up any constricted air passages, which allows you to breathe better. Alternately, you could add a few drops of eucalyptus oil to the hot water, as this oil is extremely effective in acting on receptors in the nasal mucosa to alleviate any congestion.
If you find you have no relief even after 2 to 3 weeks, you should consult a doctor. Also, if you face severe cough, these home remedies should be used only as complementary treatment along with medicinal drugs.
