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Natural home remedies for cough
contents
- Cough can have many causes
- Lollies with plant extracts
- Wraps and pads for coughing
- Quark wrap for coughing
- lemon wrap
- Chest wrap with oil
- potato wrap
- Heublumensäckchen
- Inhalation with herbal vapors
- Tea recipes for cough
- Full baths with additive
- Inhale with salt
- onion syrup
- radish syrup
- Coughing in the night
- Old home remedy: milk with honey
- Steinheilkunde with cough
- Herbalism for cough
- Other home remedies and tips
- Cured mucus
- Strengthen immune system for cough
Cough can have many causes
Coughing means violent exhalation against the still closed glottis, which then suddenly opens. The outgoing breath can reach speeds of up to 100 kilometers per hour. Cough is a protective reflex that protects the respiratory tract from being inspired by foreign bodies or other invading stimulants. The secretion of secretion, which usually develops as a result of inflammation, is also subject to the natural reflex mechanism. Coughing can be completely harmless, but this symptom persists for several weeks should a doctor be consulted urgently.
Effective home remedies for cough are, for example, sage, ginger and lemons. (Image: Hetizia / fotolia.com) Usually an infection of the respiratory tract begins with a dry irritated cough. In the jargon here is spoken of unproductive cough, as this cough is still without ejection. If the inflammation continues, mucus is formed. There are different mucus removers as home remedies, which you can use as needed in addition to the home remedies for cough. This mucus is then coughed up as secretions. To this sputum (coughing up secretions), the patient is usually interviewed by the doctor. If the secretion has already become a bit greenish, it is suspected that a bacterial inflammation is in progress, which may require the use of an antibiotic. Most of the time, however, there is a viral infection in which an antibiotic does not help.
In natural medicine there are many helpful home remedies that are used in various types of cough. However, even nature has its limits, even if numerous studies have proven the evidence of plant extracts. If the cough lasts for more than three weeks, the secretion is greenish and symptoms such as fatigue, chronic fatigue, headache, dizziness, fever and other symptoms are added, a doctor should be consulted. Being treated with an antibiotic does not mean that naturopathy can not be used.
On the contrary, an accompanying treatment with plants from nature, can usually support the healing very well. It should also be noted that after antibiotic therapy, the intestinal flora is usually impaired for many months. Therefore, you should rebuild the intestinal flora after an antibiotic drug therapy, preferably with natural remedies.
In general, a distinction is made between coughing in the morning and full-time coughing.
Psyllium and psyllium husks are an excellent and side effect-free remedy to rebuild the intestinal flora. It is important to drink enough. (Image: farfalla2017 / fotolia.com) Lollies with plant extracts
An initial relief from unpleasant coughing can provide suitable cough sweets. Recommended are the lozenges with plant extracts from plantain, marshmallow, mallow, thyme or Icelandic moss. These are available in drugstores or pharmacies. The medicinal plants have irritant and anti-inflammatory and lie like a protective film on the irritated mucosa in the throat and throat. Incidentally, there are also cough drops with propolis or added zinc. The sucking of the candy also brings extra moisture in the neck, thereby the bacteria can be better washed away there.
Wraps and pads for coughing
Wraps and pads are ancient methods that our grandmothers and great-grandmothers have successfully used. A warm stimulus from the outside stimulates the blood circulation, a cold stimulus has an anti-inflammatory effect. In addition, the substance used to impregnate the wrap or pad will aid in the natural healing process. Of course, when using diapers or pads, sufferers should not feel cold and must therefore always be kept warm.
Quark wrap for coughing
The well-known quark wrap is mainly used for cough, which does not want to stop. For example, in children who wake up at night and are tormented by an insatiable cough. Helpful this wrap is also in congested bronchi. The lean quark is applied to the center of a dishcloth, in the size of the area to be treated. The two empty ends are then hit over it. The wrap is then warmed to room temperature - for example, with a heat bottle - and placed on the chest. On top comes a woolen scarf or a silk scarf. Best one in the color blue, since blue in the color therapy, a cooling and anti-inflammatory effect is awarded. The wrap can remain on the body until the patient no longer wishes, so over night.
The antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, decongestant and immune-enhancing effect of the lemon slices can develop through a winding in the right place. (Image: stu12 / fotolia.com) lemon wrap
The lemon wrap is more likely to be used for a fixed cough. For this an unsprayed lemon is first washed and then cut into thin slices. These are placed in the middle of a cotton cloth, as many as the area to be treated requires. The empty ends of the cloth are beaten over it and then with your fist something is knocked on the lemon slices, so that a little bit of lemon juice can escape. Then the wrap comes on the chest and over it a woolen cloth. If the patient experiences an itching of the skin, which can be caused by the use of the lemons, the wrap must be removed. Otherwise, it can stay there as long as those affected want it.
Chest wrap with oil
An extremely soothing wrap is the oil wrap. The effect depends on the essential oil used for it. It is important to pay attention to the purity when buying an essential oil. The carrier oil, which should absorb the essential oil, must be high quality. Olive or almond oil is usually used for this. One hundred milliliters of carrier oil are given five to six drops of essential oil. The choice depends on the type of cough. For cramping cough, lavender oil is the drug of choice. Eucalyptus oil promotes coughing, thyme has expectorant and cough suppressant and myrrh has an expectorant and anti-inflammatory effect.
To apply the incubation with essential oils, a breast-cotton or silk cloth is soaked with the oil mixture, beat in aluminum foil and warmed between two hot water bottles. The compress comes on the chest and is here again covered with a woolen cloth. The wrap usually stays there for about an hour, but can be used overnight.
potato wrap
Potato wrap is also credited with a positive effect on coughing, with slow, continuous heat being considered beneficial. The potatoes are soft-boiled, then wrapped in a linen cloth and crushed. In order to avoid burns, it should cool down for a short time (the temperature can be controlled well with the hands) and can then be placed on the chest. Here the potato roll remains until it has cooled down completely. As long as possible, patients should relax as much as possible and not move.
Healing wraps of various kinds can contribute to the relief of coughing and concomitant complaints. (Image: InPixKommunikation / fotolia.com) Heublumensäckchen
Even pads made of bags with hay flowers are well suited as a home remedy for cough. Meanwhile, ready-made Heublumensäckchen can be purchased easily in the trade. With a tight cough, they are a real treat. The bag is heated above the steam, placed as hot as possible or bearable on the chest and wrapped in a woolen cloth. The bag holds its warmth for about three quarters of an hour. Then the breast is rubbed with a good oil, for example almond oil.
Inhalation with herbal vapors
Very pleasant for a cough inhalations affect the respiratory tract. It can be used to herbal tea, a sea salt solution or even essential oil such as eucalyptus oil. Please only use essential oils sparingly, because they are usually so intense that only a few drops in a water bowl are sufficient. If salt is used for inhalation, you can add one tablespoon per liter. More below. Linden flowers, thyme and sage leaves are equally suitable for inhalation with herbal tea. Boil the tea as much as usual, you need at least a liter of it. Careful, the vapors can be very hot - so let's keep the tea covered longer.
Tea recipes for cough
Mother Nature has numerous medicinal plants for coughing ready, and not only skeptics are surprised that an effect can be achieved only by simple tea recipes with local medicinal plants. However, it is important to know which herb works for and against what. For all types of tea, the swallowing of lukewarm tea is the most helpful. All types of tea mentioned here can be refined with a little honey as needed.
The seeds of Pimpinella anisum - Anis - contain antispasmodic and expectorant components. Even stuck mucus can be solved this way. (Image: womue / fotolia.com) Anise, for example, is known as a home remedy for flatulence. However, anise also occurs in many forms of cough tea, as it contains an expectorant component. For the preparation, one to one and a half teaspoons of squeezed anise is poured over a quarter liter of boiling water and allowed to stand for about 10 minutes.
Linden flower tea (Tiliae flos) is a very mild and tasty tea. The linden flowers are sweat-inducing, antipyretic and, above all, soothing to the affected mucous membranes. Take a heaped teaspoon per cup and let the tea draw for 10 to 15 minutes.
Marshmallow has a soothing effect on inflammation in the mouth and throat, but also on coughing. From the marshmallow roots, a teaspoon is placed in a glass and doused with cold water. After one and a half hours brewing time is waited. To make a healthy remedy without impurities, the whole thing should be heated before drinking.
Fennel is mainly known for its flatulence-inhibiting effect. However, fennel is also used for cough, especially if stuck mucus is involved. The tea is prepared from a teaspoon of crushed fennel seed, which is poured over with a quarter liter of boiling water and strained after ten minutes.
A tea made of cowslips can also be used for coughing. This is produced either as a tea infusion of boiling water from the flowers of the cowslips, which has to draw for about five minutes and then can be strained, or from the roots of the flower, boiled in water for about 20 minutes and then strained. Especially with viscous sputum the cowslip tea should have a positive effect, the tea from the roots, however, is considered much more effective than the infusion of the flowers. However, many people find the taste unpleasant and therefore prefer the tea from cowslip flowers.
Various herbal teas can relieve the cough symptoms. (Image: dima_pics / fotolia.com) A well-known medicinal plant, which is also used as a tea for cough, is the thyme. This has a cramp - and expectorant. Especially with cough attacks this is a good remedy. For the preparation, one to two teaspoons of thyme herb are used, poured with a quarter liter of boiling water and passed through a sieve after about ten minutes.
Especially with dry cough, the ribwort plantain is also known as a natural remedy. One teaspoon of the ribwort weed is boiled with about 250 milliliters of boiling water and strained after about eight to ten minutes.
Overall, it is possible to prepare a tea from a variety of medicinal plants, which also acts as a home remedy for coughing its effect. Which mixtures should preferably be used here depends on the individual complaint and the stage of the disease. It generally applies here that in the case of dry cough, remedies are more likely to be used for alleviating the coughing stimulus or for attenuating the coughing reflex, whereas in the case of increased secretion, liquefaction of the secretion is to be achieved.
Full baths with additive
Baths with essential oils as an additive have a soothing effect on the coughing stimulus, can loosen mucus and contribute to the relaxation of the bronchi, but also of the whole body. Baden should only, who likes to get into the bathtub. In addition, such a health bath should never take place without supervision, especially in the case of ailing patients. If the patient has a fever or if his circulation is weakened, then bathing is not necessary.
A thymic bath relaxes the bronchial muscles and dissolves the mucus. A spruce needle bath strengthens the respiratory system and the eucalyptus bath has a soothing effect on the breathing. The bath additives are commercially available as ready-made oil bath mixtures.
Herbal essences and oil extracts are ideal as a bath additive, as well as there are commercially prepared mixtures for a cold bath. (Photo: PhotoSG.com/fotolia.com) Inhale with salt
Inhaling is good for the bronchi. In acute cough, inhalation can be done at least twice a day. Inhaling with common salt is a simple but extremely effective method. Salt moistens the mucous membranes and dissolves tight secretions. For inhalation, good sea salt or Himalayan salt is used. In a pot come ten grams of salt and a liter of boiling water. Once the mixture is no longer too hot, sufferers bend over the pot and cover a towel over the head and tube, so that the heat is retained for a long time. The nose is breathed in and out through the mouth. Inhaling is only suitable for adults and older children. Young children and infants should be kept away from the hot steam.
onion syrup
If cough syrup does not help anymore, home-made onion syrup is often the last resort. A small chopped onion is mixed with some honey and put into a glass. The whole thing must then stand in the warm and pull over night. Then the onion juice is ready. Straining the resulting juice and taking a teaspoon several times a day promises relief of coughing and facilitates coughing.
radish syrup
Instead of the onion, a radish can also be made into juice. For this, a black radish is hollowed out in the middle and filled with honey. This has to last a day. As with the onion syrup, juice forms, from which several spoons are drunk throughout the day.
Inhaling - best with sea salt and chamomile - is a very old and proven home remedy for cough. (Image: Martin Christ / fotolia.com) Coughing in the night
If the cough occurs frequently in the evening and at night, the following measures are quite helpful. First, the headboard of the bed should be slightly higher, which can greatly relieve the coughing. A warm thyme tea before sleeping, possibly sweetened with a little honey, soothes the mucous membranes as well. What else helps are Quark wrappers that can stay on the chest all night long. Dry air in the apartment irritates the mucous membranes in addition, which is why in the bedroom, for example, a few wet towels should be hung.
Old home remedy: milk with honey
Who does not know the old home remedy of our grandmothers - hot milk with honey. Only something must be considered for the application. Milk should only be drunk when the cough is still dry. Once mucus has formed, milk would only increase mucus production and make the cough worse. In the evening before going to sleep, drink a hot milk with some honey, help to sleep peacefully and not to be awakened by annoying dry cough.
Steinheilkunde with cough
For those who believe in the healing of stones, the red coral in coughs is the drug of choice. Worn on a leather or silk ribbon around the neck, in such a way that the stone has contact with the chest, one says that this relaxing and dissolving healing powers. In addition, the chalcedony promises to eliminate hoarseness and also to solve dry cough.
Herbalism for cough
Herbal medicine knows many proven effective agents for the treatment of cough. Again, it is generally to distinguish between the herbal preparations for the relief of the cough and the means for the liquefaction of the secretion. There are also herbal ingredients that are supposed to have anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effects. For example, the oral intake of extracts of ivy leaves in bronchial diseases with strong coughing and viscous mucus is said to have a very positive effect. The secretion in the lungs is liquefied, alleviates the Hustreiz and also achieved an antiviral, antibacterial and antifungal effect. Not without reason, the common ivy was proclaimed the medicinal plant of the year 2009.
True Thyme is a treat not only for cough but also for other respiratory diseases. It can be used as a herbal tea, cough syrup, plant extract or inhalation. (Image: spline_x / fotolia.com) Thyme is one of the most effective homeopathic remedies for cough. Extracts of the medicinal plant have expectorant effect, facilitate the coughing up of the secretion and develop an antibacterial and antiviral effect. In particular, the contained essential oils are attributed here extremely positive effects. True Thyme was voted medicinal plant of the year in 2006.
Other medicinal plants whose extracts can be used for coughing are, for example, cowslip, ribwort, liquorice root, Icelandic moss, coltsfoot, common hornet, Echinacea or Kalmegh (Indian medicinal plant, which is used in the Ayurveda for cough). The repertoire of herbal medicine for the treatment of cough seems almost inexhaustible and in many cases, the active ingredients are now also part of modern medicines. As a herbal remedy that can be used against cough and bronchitis, mention should be made here of Umckaloabo, which is derived from the roots of a special African Pelargonium genus and has also experienced a veritable spreading boom in Germany.
Other home remedies and tips
Drinking is very important for coughing. If too little is drunk, the mucus can dissolve badly. The best are warm water or tea. It should also be remembered that not all home remedies are suitable for children and infants. Especially with honey, caution is required. This should not be given to the little ones before the first year of life. Not all essential oils are suitable for children and infants. This must be clarified beforehand.
Moist air relieves the urge to cough. Bowls of hot water, possibly enriched with a few drops of essential oil, increase the humidity in a beneficial way. Especially at night the air in the bedroom should not be too dry.
Garlic is an excellent medicinal plant for a wide variety of ailments. Brushing the soles of the feet with garlic should also help against coughing. (Image: Kai Zhao / fotolia.com) When coughing, it helps to coat the soles of the feet with garlic. This sounds adventurous, but this has already been successfully tested by many naturopaths. The reflex zones for breathing are located on the soles of your feet just below the toes, in an area of about four centimeters, over the entire foot width. With a sliced garlic clove, this area is rubbed, socks over and off to bed. The whole thing does not smell pleasant, but it can be extremely helpful.
Cured mucus
If patients initially decide to use home remedies for coughing and refrain from visiting a doctor, they should definitely keep an eye on the consistency of coughing up (medical: sputum). This provides information on the cause of the complaints and on whether it may be urgent but a doctor's visit is required. The sputum also gives the doctor important clues for a diagnosis. If the sputum is yellow-green, it could be a purulent, bacterial infectious disease. If the mucus is rather white, usually there is an infection by viruses. If the expectoration is coughing white / frothy, this is a possible indication of pulmonary congestion or edema dar. A grayish color is a bacterial infection in healing, which usually indicates a lived-through pneumonia. If the sputum is brownish, this is in many cases due to old blood.
If the cough persists for a long period of time and is very pronounced, the mucous membrane of the bronchi can be damaged. In such cases, it sometimes happens that the coughing secretion also contains blood threads. A medical examination is required in all cases mentioned, the coughed up mucus you spit directly into the toilet, and do not swallow it down.
Strengthen immune system for cough
If you often suffer from coughs or colds, you can certainly strengthen your own immune system against it. Especially in the cold season, eat more foods containing vitamin C. These include citrus, but also peppers, spinach and cabbage contain plenty of the important vitamin. Omega-3 fatty acids are also known to boost the immune system. So eat more sea fish, or take fish oil as a dietary supplement to yourself. Last but not least, magnesium is an important nutrient for strengthening the immune system. Bananas and nuts are perfect suppliers for this trace element. (sb, sw, fp, dp, updated on 14/08/2018)