How to get rid of a cough quickly at home

When the human body is exposed to irritating factors, it develops a defensive reaction in the form of coughing. Cough, in turn, causes a lot of trouble to a person. It is for this reason that it is advisable to know how you can quickly cure a cough at home. It is recommended to consult a doctor to determine what is causing the cough.

What are the reasons for a cough?

Cough is a protective reaction of the human body to the appearance of any pathogen in it. A seemingly harmless cough can be caused by a respiratory infection, leading to the appearance of dangerous diseases - bronchitis, laryngitis.

The cough may be:

  • Dry. This cough is more difficult for a person to endure, since such a cough causes debilitating, prolonged attacks without relief, leading to vomiting.
  • Wet, with mucus secretion. Mucus removes harmful microorganisms from the respiratory tract. Thanks to this, a person recovers faster, most often without complications.

It happens that the cough goes away on its own. But most often, if a cough is not treated, serious diseases can develop, which sometimes even lead to death. It is for this reason that it is necessary to use all reasonable methods to treat cough.

There are many medical and folk methods for treating cough. It is best to use traditional methods that are gentler on the body. This will help you cope with your cough easily and quickly.

Any treatment for cough will be ineffective, and sometimes even useless, if a person does not know why it appeared. The most common cough triggers are related to viral and bacterial infections. But these infections are not always to blame for the occurrence of an unpleasant factor. There are many other pathologies that influence the occurrence of spasms of the respiratory tract. Cough may occur due to:

  • Heart and vascular diseases.
  • Diseases of the digestive tract.
  • Oncological diseases.
  • Pathologies of the nervous system.
  • ENT diseases.
  • Allergic reactions.

For each of the above cases, individual treatment is applied. Only a specialist will be able to select the right medications and decide whether it makes sense to prescribe any procedures.

What is a cough?

Coughing is a defense mechanism that clears the airways of irritants and germs. It can safely be called a useful reaction of our body: after all, it protects the trachea and bronchi from pathogenic infections and foreign bodies.

Most often, a cough may indicate a cold, but it is important to understand that severe coughing attacks can be symptoms of dangerous processes in the body and serious, and sometimes chronic, diseases. In one case or another, the cough has its own characteristics, and it is its character that helps make an accurate diagnosis. Therefore, it is important to consult a doctor in time to determine the cause of the symptom.

What you need to know about drug treatment

To quickly get rid of a cough, you need to find out why it appeared. A person can cough due to exposure to harmful viruses and bacteria, pathologies of the digestive tract, nervous diseases and for many other reasons. In each individual case, the doctor prescribes medications, which are divided into categories, and can be:

  • Bronchodilators . They have an effect on the bronchi and have a relaxing effect on smooth muscles, which allows them to remove spasms. These medications normalize air circulation in the bronchi due to their expansion. As a result, the patient's breathing normalizes.
  • Mucallytic means . These products help separate viscous secretions. After taking them, the mucus becomes thinner and easier to remove from the body.
  • Expectorant drugs . These medications are inexpensive but quite effective. They are prescribed in cases of sputum discharge along with cough. The secretion is removed from the body faster due to irritation of the mucous membranes.
  • Antitussive drugs . These drugs contain substances that affect the human nervous system, locally affecting bronchial receptors, reducing their activity and eliminating spasms.
  • Combined . These drugs have a comprehensive effect on the human body, reducing the severity of cough, relieving pain, diluting secretions, and destroying bacteria. The use of these medications helps cure even the most complex infections.

To select the most effective remedy for the treatment of dry and wet cough, you need to consult a doctor. To identify the reasons for the respiratory spasm, you should not refuse the detailed examination prescribed by your doctor and the necessary tests.

To relieve a patient from coughing, the doctor takes into account the following factors:

  • Pathology that may be causing this symptom.
  • Presence of concomitant infections.
  • The patient has chronic diseases.
  • Age category.
  • What type of cough is it?
  • What are the features of discharge during coughing?
  • Does the patient have a tendency to allergic reactions?

Causes of severe cough

The most likely causes of a very severe cough are inflammatory diseases of the upper and lower respiratory tract: pharyngitis, laryngitis, tracheitis, bronchitis, pneumonia and their combinations (laryngotracheitis, tracheobronchitis). Inflammation of the mucous membrane of the respiratory organs can be caused by infectious and non-infectious factors. Infectious inflammation results from infection with viruses, bacteria or fungi. Non-infectious inflammation develops with allergies and in response to irritating substances (tobacco smoke, industrial dust, chemical agents). In addition, other reasons can lead to a severe cough:

  • non-inflammatory respiratory diseases;
  • heart failure;
  • neuroses.

A doctor should determine the exact cause and give recommendations on what and how to cure a severe cough.

What medications can quickly eliminate dry cough?

To get rid of a dry cough without sputum production, the following medications are used:

  • Gerbion. This cough syrup is a safe remedy that eliminates spasm of the respiratory tract. After taking it, the viscosity of the secretion decreases, the tissues are disinfected. Herbion for dry cough helps coat and protect the respiratory tract, and the presence of vitamin C in it strengthens local immunity.
  • Falimint. The dragee has a mild analgesic effect, eliminates irritation of the mucous membranes and has a sedative effect. The product is used for dry coughs without sputum production. It is taken by adults and children from 5 years of age.
  • Sinekod. The syrup helps fight the most severe and obsessive coughs. It blocks the cough center, which is located in the human brain. Due to codeine, which is part of the drug, Sinecode has many contraindications; it is not recommended for children.
  • Codelac. These are tablets, elixir or syrup. It is an antitussive drug that has a central effect. It is made from natural substances. The drug is prescribed for dry and wet cough. When taken, the excitability of the respiratory system decreases, thereby eliminating cough. But the drug does not depress the respiratory center, so it is not suitable for long-term treatment - dependence may occur.
  • Libexin. Inexpensive syrup or tablets have a pronounced antitussive effect. Eliminate irritation, restore nerve fibers, and have a relaxing effect on the respiratory tract. The drug does not inhibit the functioning of the respiratory center, thins mucus and reduces inflammation. Adverse reactions may occur - fatigue, drowsiness, dizziness, so it is not recommended for drivers.

Misconceptions and errors in cough treatment

Under no circumstances should you start coughing.

There are several erroneous theories and methods of treating cough that are still passed down from century to century, from generation to generation. Moreover, in some cases doctors even recommend using them. But the effectiveness of such methods is, to put it mildly, controversial and has not actually been tested by anyone. Play slot machines for free and without registration

Let's consider these misconceptions:

Warm milk with honey

Warm milk with honey

Warm milk with honey The method may be correct, but it has a narrow scope. It should be said right away that it is effective only for dry coughs; in addition, this remedy should not be given to patients if their temperature is elevated.

Naturally, such a remedy should not be given to patients with lactose intolerance or various honey components. In general, apitherapy products, be it honey or propolis, should not be overused. All of them have a limited shelf life (albeit quite long), but after that their healing effect is neutralized and what the consequences of their use will be, one can only guess.

Use of mustard plasters

Mustard plasters

Using mustard plasters Mustard plasters will not help with a cough under normal conditions. This remedy will only be effective at temperature. In addition, you need to remember that after the effects of mustard you should never go outside or to any cool place.

Pregnant women and children

Pregnant and child

Pregnant women and children It is believed that folk remedies for coughs do not have the same restrictions that are present in products of the chemical industry. In particular, they can be used by pregnant and lactating women, as well as preschool children without any serious restrictions.

This information is partially correct. Since the effectiveness of folk remedies is somewhat lower, they are not so seriously tolerated by this category of patients. But still, they should not be abused.

VIDEO: How to get rid of a cough in 1 day//The best folk remedies for cough//TESTED FOR YEARS!!!

What medications can you take to quickly cure a wet cough?

To quickly get rid of a wet cough, the doctor first determines the nature of the discharge, conducts a general analysis of the person’s condition and studies his tests. And only after that he prescribes one of the following drugs:

  • ACC or similar means. These are fast-dissolving effervescent tablets. The product allows you to quickly dilute the secretion secreted by the bronchi and remove it from the body. The drug acts as a local anesthetic and is an antioxidant. Prescribed for adult patients.
  • Mukaltin. Produced in tablet form. It is a mucolytic agent that quickly thins mucus. Gives excellent results after several days of use. It can be taken by children over 12 years of age and adults who do not suffer from allergic reactions, diabetes mellitus and do not have pathologies of the digestive tract.
  • Ambroxol. Tablets or mixtures are prescribed for serious pathologies of the respiratory system and can be taken as a prophylactic agent. The drug removes mucus and quickly eliminates inflammatory processes in the respiratory organs.
  • Bromhexine. The tablets should be taken by people who produce thick mucus when coughing. The drug has almost no contraindications and does not reduce the effectiveness of antibiotics. When taking, you should drink plenty of water.
  • Bronholitin. Syrup is the most effective combination product. It deactivates the cough center, removes bronchial mucus, and removes swelling of the mucous membranes. It is prescribed for both adults and children. However, in rare cases, when taking it, blood pressure increases, dermatitis or rapid heartbeat may occur.

Drink plenty of warm fluids for wet coughs

When answering the question of how to cure a wet cough in an adult, it is worth mentioning another necessary and effective method of treatment: drinking plenty of vitamins. During a cold, you should drink more liquid than usual to moisturize the mucous membrane and quickly thin the mucus. This can be warm mineral water, herbal decoctions, teas, fruit drinks, milk in combination with honey, etc.

How to quickly cure a cough with folk remedies

To treat cough at home, you can also use folk remedies. The combined use of medications and folk remedies also gives good results. But before starting treatment, you should consult your doctor.

The most useful means:

  • Drinking warm milk. Warm milk coats the mucous membranes, thins mucus and warms the body. For better results, honey is added to milk to enhance its antibacterial properties. You can dissolve butter in the drink, which reduces spasms, relieves coughs and protects mucous membranes.
  • Use of animal fat. Animal fat has medicinal properties because it contains many useful substances. Fat helps soothe throat inflammation and thins mucus. Lard is taken either in pure form or mixed with other products.
  • Taking burnt sugar. In order to get burnt sugar, you need to heat granulated sugar until it turns into golden caramel. After this, it is poured into molds and dissolves like candy. This is a good way to treat dry cough. To enhance the therapeutic effect, sugar is taken with lemon, honey, warm milk or infusions of medicinal herbs.
  • Honey. Everyone probably knows that honey is a disinfectant, antiviral and antibacterial agent. It allows you to quickly get rid of cough. To do this, a spoonful of honey is slowly absorbed. For greater effectiveness, honey is taken with milk, added to black radish juice or to decoctions of medicinal plants.

Chocolate

An interesting folk recipe for children who do not want to take medicine.

Action : A thick and warm chocolate drink not only improves your mood, but warms and envelops an irritated throat. Cocoa has a proto-inflammatory effect and calms the urge to cough.

Recipe : Melt a bar of dark chocolate, add grated cocoa, butter (or cocoa butter) and sugar to taste. Add the mixture to the boiling milk and stir thoroughly for several minutes until smooth. You can spread the cooled chocolate butter on a loaf or bun and wash it down with milk.

How to quickly cure a child's cough

If a small child develops a cough, you should immediately consult a pediatrician, since self-medication can end in failure. However, you should not neglect simple folk remedies:

  • It never hurts to give your child inhalation.
  • Mustard plasters will warm up a coughing child.
  • You can use the old “grandfather’s” method - give the baby cans.
  • For tracheitis or bronchitis, the child should be given mucolytic and expectorant drugs.
  • Give your child plenty of fluids - warm tea, infusions and decoctions of medicinal plants, fruit drinks, warm milk with the addition of a small amount of butter.
  • To get rid of a dry cough, it is fashionable to give children hot foot baths.
  • In the room in which there is a coughing child, it is necessary to maintain normal humidity conditions.
  • In some cases, a light and gentle chest massage helps get rid of a cough, or make it less intense.

Symptoms of a severe cough

The manifestations of a severe cough may differ depending on what disease it is caused by:

  • for laryngitis and laryngotracheitis.
    The cough is rough, “barking”; young children may develop attacks of shortness of breath with difficulty in breathing (stenotic laryngotracheitis or false croup). It is accompanied by hoarseness of voice, intensifies at night and in the early morning hours;
  • with tracheitis.

    The cough is obsessive, unproductive or unproductive, accompanied by chest pain, occurs and intensifies with deep breathing (for example, during physical activity) and in cold air;

  • during an attack of bronchial asthma or broncho-obstructive syndrome.

    The cough is wet, unproductive, paroxysmal in nature, shortness of breath with difficulty in exhaling is noted. Coughing attacks may be accompanied by gagging or vomiting. Bronchial obstruction often develops against the background of infections caused by the influenza virus and respiratory syncytial virus, and can be observed with bronchitis in young children;

  • with whooping cough.

    Manifests itself in the form of a prolonged attack of dry or unproductive cough, accompanied by redness and puffiness of the face, vomiting is possible during the attack and the appearance of hemorrhages on the sclera and facial skin;

  • for bronchitis and pneumonia.

    The cough is wet, unproductive or productive, accompanied by sputum discharge;

How to quickly cure a cough in a pregnant woman

Medicines for pregnant women are prescribed by a doctor. Self-medication is prohibited. You need to take medications very carefully in the first three months of pregnancy, when the systems and organs of the baby begin to form in the womb.

The following folk remedies may be suitable for treating cough:

  • Inhalation. For inhalation, it is suitable to use medicinal plants - string, wild rosemary, chamomile, or essential oils of mint or eucalyptus.
  • Taking herbal decoctions. Decoctions of chamomile, string, and plantain are taken orally. A decoction is prepared from 1 tablespoon of herb brewed with a glass of boiling water. You need to take it 3 times a day.
  • Cabbage leaf compress. The cabbage leaf is smeared with honey, placed on the chest, covered with a towel or scarf and kept on all night.

Pregnant women are not recommended to take medications, but it is not always possible to use folk remedies. In this case, you must consult a doctor to prescribe cough treatment. Doctors are trying to cure the patient with drugs of plant origin, containing thyme, marshmallow, and primrose.

Inhalations for wet cough

A productive wet cough without fever can be treated with inhalations. These procedures, based on the inhalation of medicinal and biologically active substances, help reduce thickness and viscosity, more actively liquefy and remove sputum. To treat coughs, steam inhalers and nebulizers are used, to which special medications are added. Inhalations that help moisturize the mucous membrane help to quickly reduce pain, reduce the viscosity of sputum, eliminate spasms and relax the muscles of the bronchi. You can use Doctor MOM® Phyto ointment, which is locally irritating , distracting, anti-inflammatory and antiseptic effect.

Taking Precautions

Since the nature of the cough varies, it is necessary not to neglect precautions during treatment. Treatment methods should be chosen after establishing the nature of the cough. Each treatment method is not without contraindications. Therefore, you should choose medications and folk remedies very carefully to avoid allergic reactions. The greatest caution should be observed when treating cough in children, pregnant women or nursing mothers.

The presence of the following pathologies in patients is also dangerous:

  • Cardiovascular diseases.
  • Diseases of the digestive tract.
  • Pathologies of the kidneys and liver.
  • Hormonal imbalance.
  • Oncological diseases.
  • Pathologies of the neurological system.

To quickly get rid of a debilitating cough, you need to consult a doctor in time to establish an accurate diagnosis and select the optimal medications. To enhance the effect of treatment, you can additionally use folk remedies, but only after the recommendation of a doctor.

Mustard plasters

Action : Mustard powder has a good warming and vasodilating effect. Mustard plasters can also be used for prolonged coughs to eliminate congestion in the lungs. During the procedure, blood circulation increases and oxygen transport to the lung tissues improves. As a result, sputum is removed faster and more efficiently, and it becomes easier for a person to breathe.

How to apply : The skin should be intact and without rashes. Wet the workpiece in hot water and apply it to your chest or back. Then the patient should be wrapped warmly and kept there for 5–15 minutes. In case of unpleasant sensations, you must immediately remove the mustard plaster.

Contraindications : Mustard plasters are not prescribed to children under one year of age. Excluded in case of allergies or high temperature. Do not apply to the area of ​​the heart, kidneys, bone protrusions, or to the mammary glands. Use for more than 4 days in a row is not recommended.

Some useful tips and recipes for quickly getting rid of cough at home

Anyone can get sick and start coughing. A cough has a negative effect on the entire body: a person feels unwell, and people around him look askance at him. Therefore, it is not surprising that each of us tries to recover quickly.

Currently, there are various medications that can quickly get rid of a cold cough. You can also cure a cough with folk remedies that have been tested by many generations of people.

With the help of folk remedies you can get rid of a debilitating and severe cough. However, it is very dangerous to self-medicate. In cases where traditional medicine cannot quickly get rid of a cough, you should consult a doctor.

Coughs can be overcome with onions

Onions contain many biologically active substances - phytoncides, which are antiviral substances. In addition, onions contain selenium, which is a natural antioxidant and stimulates the immune system. Taking onions helps the body overcome the disease.

Cough caused by colds or viral diseases is treated with raw onions, which can be taken without anything or with different dishes. Do not forget that heat treatment takes away the medicinal properties of the vegetable.

Onions are taken in different ways: grated or mixed with honey. Onion juice and honey are added to warm milk. A couple of finely chopped onions and garlic help young children recover faster.

Treatment of cough by gargling

A dry cough greatly irritates the throat. To relieve irritation, it is recommended to gargle:

  • Dissolve 2 teaspoons of baking soda in 200 ml of warm water. Frequent rinsing relieves coughing attacks and relieves sore throat. After eating and before going to bed, be sure to gargle.
  • The following recipe is suitable for adults: gargling with the composition: add ½ teaspoon of fresh propolis and 20 drops of alcohol tincture of propolis to a glass of water. Rinse 3 times a day.
  • Dissolve ½ teaspoon of salt and 2 drops of iodine in a glass of water. Gargling helps relieve a sore throat and also makes a dry cough moist.

Cough is treated by warming the chest

To quickly get rid of a cough, you need to warm up the lungs and bronchi. To do this, you can put cups, mustard plasters on the patient, make a warm compress or rub. Thermal procedures are prohibited at elevated body temperatures. For a compress, boiled warm potatoes (mashed potatoes), honey, onions, and animal fat are suitable.

The compress should be applied to the chest or back of the coughing person, covered with gauze and polyethylene. Tie a woolen scarf or blanket over this. After removing the compress, you need to anoint your skin with sunflower oil.

Features of traditional medicine in the treatment of cough

Bee products are often used in folk medicine to treat coughs.

Before deciding for yourself what to choose - classical or traditional medicine, tablets or infusions, you need to understand that every phenomenon, especially those related to human health, has its positive and negative sides.

Traditional (folk) medicine, it would seem, has only advantages: its remedies are of natural origin, are inexpensive, and are very effective in their price range.

Another important advantage of traditional medicine is that almost all of its remedies are powerful stimulants of the immune system, that is, they are perceived with greater tolerance by the general public and improve its resistance to disease. However, not everything is as simple as it seems at first glance.

Let's look at the disadvantages of traditional medicine:

  1. Presence of side effects. Almost all herbs, roots, twigs, etc., used in the preparation of folk remedies consist of many substances and components. Which automatically means the use of several active substances. This can lead to a wide variety of side effects
  2. Contraindications . Unlike the world of “official” pharmacology, where trials of certain drugs have been carried out for decades, this is not the case in folk medicine. Therefore, it is quite difficult to say under what clinical picture how this or that folk remedy will behave.
  3. Efficiency, speed of action, efficiency. Traditional medicine products are significantly inferior to chemical industry products in terms of the listed parameters. Moreover, every year more and more new drugs appear, the effectiveness of which only increases. And folk remedies remain at the same level from year to year from century to century. Sometimes it’s easier (and healthier) to buy tablets at the pharmacy and take a course of them for 4-5 days than to drink a dubious tincture of some berries every day using folk remedies for 2-3 months, additionally loading your excretory system
  4. Limited capabilities of folk remedies. Herbs and roots do not always help. Usually, they can cope with the symptoms of the disease only in the early stages of the disease, and in the case when it is advanced, they have to consult a doctor, stopping self-medication

Traditional cough recipes

And even despite these shortcomings, we can say that traditional medicine has accumulated enormous experience in treating not only coughs, but also other diseases. Herbal preparations used according to the rules contribute to significant relief of the patient’s condition, and in some cases, completely get rid of unpleasant symptoms.

Let's look at the most popular ways to combat cough using folk remedies.

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