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Next, we want to tell you about home remedies for coughs that you can make with inexpensive ingredients that you are sure to have at home. But first of all, it is important to know what a cough is and why it starts.
How does a cough start?
Although coughs can occur for different reasons, the most common cause is due to the appearance of an irritation between the lungs and throat. This occurs when the body needs to get rid of harmful substances in order to clear the airway.
It should also be remembered that there is a chronic cough, which can trigger the warning signs of a possible illness, although most people confuse it with a simple cough, ignoring the signals that our body is giving us about a more serious health problem.
The different types of cough
Here is a list of the different types of cough:
Dry cough: this cough is not accompanied by any expectoration or sputum.
Dry coughs, also known as irritative coughs, nervous coughs or unproductive coughs, do not involve expectoration, i.e. no mucus is expelled, and are a cough that irritates the respiratory tract, making the coughing problem worse and worse.
It is important to know that a dry cough should be treated and eliminated as soon as possible because coughing gradually aggravates the irritation of the airways, and it is also a mechanism for spreading germs due to the violent respiratory movements it causes. Dry coughs simply scrape the airways.
Productive cough
This is the complete opposite of a dry cough as it does produce expectoration and phlegm. A productive cough is a cough that brings up mucus from the lungs or throat. It can be acute, i.e. it comes and goes, or chronic, lasting over time.
Acute cough
An acute cough is one that comes on suddenly and is often due to a cold, flu or sinus infection. It usually disappears after three weeks.
Asthmatic cough
This is a type of cough caused by asthma, which is dry and causes shortness of breath.
Chronic cough
This is when there is an episode of cough that lasts for more than 15 days. This «permanent» cough can cause serious irritation of the trachea and larynx, caused by the violent way in which blood is expelled. It can also cause intercostal pain.
A chronic cough is when the cough lasts longer than 8 weeks for adults, or 4 weeks for children. Chronic cough is more than a nuisance. Chronic coughing can leave you sleepless at night, even exhausted. Very severe cases of chronic cough can include vomiting, lightheadedness, tiredness and even broken ribs.
Although it can sometimes be difficult to identify the problem that causes chronic coughing, the most common causes are smoking, postnasal drip, stomach acid reflux and asthma.
Convulsive cough
This is a violent cough, caused by a rapid succession of several coughing spells.
False dry cough
The characteristic of this cough is that it originates when there is mucus, but it swallows itself, it is produced after swallowing mucus and is much more frequent in children and women.
Psychosomatic cough
This type of cough originates in people who are very nervous or who start coughing when talking to another person.
When referring to a simple cough there is a very common case, and that is that most people go directly to a pharmacy instead of consulting a doctor. They buy a series of medicines to alleviate and cure their cough, when in reality they are wasting money. Don’t forget that there are many home remedies that are equally or more effective than these pharmaceutical drugs.
10 home remedies for coughs
1. Natural honey syrup
A large number of scientific studies have shown that honey is a very effective treatment for coughs and sore throats. Honey is an excellent natural remedy. Although it can be taken directly, it is best mixed with coconut oil and lemon juice for maximum effect.
2. Hot baths
Hot baths are recommended because of the steam that helps to soothe the airways, loosen nasal congestion and remove accumulated phlegm from the lungs and throat. However, be very careful if you suffer from asthma, as it can have a counterproductive effect. You can also add a few drops of oil of thyme, lavender, tea tree, peppermint, etc. to the water.
3. Infusion of black pepper tea and honey
This is an excellent home remedy for wet cough. It is very simple to prepare. Just mix an infusion of black pepper tea with honey. The black pepper benefits circulation and phlegm flow and the honey brings relief from coughs. You will only need one teaspoon of pepper and two tablespoons of honey, add boiling water and let it steep with a lid for 15 minutes.
4. Thyme infusion
Among the main qualities of thyme leaves we can highlight that it is a powerful and effective home remedy to soothe coughs. It also helps to relax the muscles of the windpipe, allowing inflammation to be reduced. You can also make steam treatments by adding a few drops of thyme oil to the water. It will help to decongest and clear the air.
5. Drink plenty of water
This helps to relieve coughing, as drinking plenty of water, about 2 litres a day, helps to flush out mucus. A good intake of water will keep the throat hydrated.
6. Menthol cough drops
A few drops of menthol will numb the throat, which is important for controlling cough reflexes.
7. Eating lemon to cure coughs
For this remedy, simply add a little salt and pepper to half a lemon and then suck on it. With lemon juice, you will not only get temporary relief from the symptoms, but it will also provide a good source of vitamins and energy for your body.
8. Mixing different teas
Making a mixture of peppermint, elderflower or hyssop tea is a really effective remedy for treating coughs.
9. Ginger
Among the capabilities of ginger we can mention that it is an antihistamine and decongestant. To make this home remedy for coughs, add twelve slices of ginger to a pot with three cups of water and let it boil for about 20 minutes. Once you strain it, add a spoonful of honey and the juice of a lemon. Let it steep for a while before drinking.
10. Licorice
Licorice can help reduce throat inflammation. Licorice can be sucked or infused with lemon juice and honey.
The root, and especially the bark of liquorice, contains 2-15% triterpene saponins, including mainly glycyrrhizin in the form of a mixture of potassium and calcium salts of glycyrrhizinic acid and hydroxyglycyrrhizin. The chemical structure of glycyrrhizinic acid was identified in 1989. It is a pentacyclic triterpene of the oleanane type. Glycyrrhizinic acid has a sweetening power of about 50 times that of cane sugar, the component that gives liquorice recipes their value.
Alternatives to cure coughs
Bromelain
Pineapple contains bromelain. It is an enzyme rich in anti-inflammatory properties and helps fight infections and thus eliminates bacteria. A single cup of pineapple juice contains more than 50% of the daily requirement of vitamin C.
How to prevent coughs
In addition to some home remedies to prevent coughs, here are some tips on how to prevent annoying coughs.
1- Avoid contact with people who are ill.
2- Cover your nose and mouth when sneezing.
3- Frequently clean the areas you frequent such as your home, work, etc.
4- Stay hydrated.
5- Don’t forget to keep your hands clean. After eating, coughing, eating or going to the toilet you should wash your hands.
6- Stay away from things that cause allergies.
Other remedies you can use to prevent coughs are the following:
These remedies are usually remedies to prevent not to do on the spot when you have a cough, they serve to lead a lifestyle and a kind of habits that will make it more difficult for the cough to appear.
– Avoiding alcohol and tobacco is a great way to reduce the chances of getting a cough, this happens because we help the immune system, another thing we can do that is very easy to do is to get enough sleep to rest the body.
– Avoid dry air, this air is very harmful to our body and increases the chances of having a cough, dry air apart from giving us more cough makes our skin drier and also causes us to have a sharp sore throat. Another symptom of dry air is that we feel congested, thirsty and tired, a feeling that is not at all pleasant for us.
It can also cause asthma if we are exposed to dry air for long periods of time.
– Avoid as much as possible contact with people who are suffering from pain or coughing, these people if they suffer from some symptoms means that they are not healthy or have some symptom because of having been exposed to some situation in which they have been infected, it may be a simple cough but if you get too close to them you can get it and you will have a cold.
– Do not shake hands with people who have symptoms, this may seem silly, but it is really important, many times we do not realise it, but we put our hands to our face and if we have shaken hands with an infected person and a few minutes later we scratch our eyes or face, this will cause us to become infected in a very silly way that we could have avoided. From this fact we draw another recommendation which is:
– Pay attention to our hands: We have to make sure that we do not touch surfaces that may be contaminated, that can cause us some disease, and if we know that we are going to touch surfaces that may be contaminated it is important that when we finish we wash our hands with a good soap and so that we disinfect our hands well.
More tips in https://casasincreibles.com/los-mejores-remedios-caseros/