Explore dark chocolate with increased cocoa content helps with cough

Relieve cough: Chocolate works better than cough syrup

A few months ago, a study was published that concluded that all tested remedies for cough are as good as useless. Many people are more likely to resort to home remedies for such complaints anyway. That also chocolate can help against cough, but most of them had not been known yet.

Relieve cough with natural home remedies

The cold season not only ensures cool temperatures, but also often for coughs. This is annoying and not easy to handle. It often takes more than two weeks to disappear completely. Not even medications help to shorten the duration. However, most common colds can be alleviated with natural home remedies. For example, milk helps with coughing with honey. Even chocolate can bring relief here.

Scientific research has shown that chocolate can also help against coughing. The positive effect is partly due to an ingredient of cocoa. (Image: karepa / fotolia.com)

Chocolate helps

Chocolate is sometimes called a "sweet sin" because it can lead to obesity when consuming more.

But there is nothing wrong with the occasional, moderate consumption. A little of it can even make you happy and help against stress.

And you can treat it with cough, too.

Solid evidence

An English study has shown that chocolate can relieve cough.

"I know that sounds like Mary Poppins, but as an independent clinician who has spent years researching the mechanism of coughing, I can assure you that the evidence is indeed as solid as a fruit and nut bar," said Professor Alyn Morice from the University of Hull in English Yorkshire to the British newspaper "Daily Mail".

He came to his conclusions when he examined the results of the largest real-world study of an over-the-counter cough medicine in Europe.

The survey, which included 163 people, showed that those who took a cocoa-based medicine instead of a regular drug could see significant improvements within two days.

And twice as many patients were able to stop the treatment prematurely because their coughing had subsided.

According to the information, the study results should be published within the next twelve months.

Special ingredient

However, this was not the first study that showed that chocolate can calm coughing.

For example, researchers at Imperial College in London found that theobromine, an alkaloid in cocoa, is more effective at suppressing coughing than codeine - an established component of cough medicine.

According to the report in the English newspaper, the positive effect is due to the fact that chocolate is stickier and more viscous than conventional cough medications.

Therefore, make it a coating that protect the nerve endings in the throat that trigger the onset of coughing.

This effect also explains why honey or sugary syrup can help. However, the expert says that chocolate brings more.

However, drinking hot chocolate does not have the same effect because the cocoa does not come into contact with the neck long enough to form a protective layer.

The slow sucking on a piece of chocolate can certainly bring some relief, according to Morice. Recommended are products with a high cocoa content. (Ad)