A lingering cough can stop you in your tracks, so lets explore some good old home redmedies you can start using today. Mark Yoder, MD, assistant professor of pulmonary and critical care medicine at Rush University Medical Centre in Chicago says that "a little cough can be debilitating".
The cold and flu season can bring on hacking coughs that can leave you with very aching chest muscles. your chest muscles aching. But did you know that colds and flu aren't the only triggers to hacking coughs. Allergies, asthma, acid reflux, dry air as well as and smoking are very common causes of coughs.
Most of the time, you are able to manage your cough at home by taking some cough reliefs as well as by removing potential allergens.
Here are some tips to manage your cough at home:
Stay Hydrated
Drinking liquids such as water, orange juice and herbal tea help to keep mucous membranes moist.
Try Hot Drinks
Drinking a warm herbal tea of your choice with honey also can soothe the throat.
Take Steamy Showers, and Use a Humidifier
The steam from a hot shower can help a cough by loosening secretions in the nose.
Humidifiers may also help. However, it is important to clean out your humidifiers routinely. Robert Naclerio, MD, chief of otolaryngology at the University of Chicago says that if you don't clean it, "humidifiers become reservoirs for pumping out fungus and mould into the air, and bacteria."
Remove Irritants from the Air
Perfumes and scented bathroom sprays may seem harmless. However, for some people they can cause chronic sinus irritation, which produces extra mucus that leads to chronic cough, says Alan Weiss, MD, a general internist at the Cleveland Clinic.
The worst irritant in the air is smoke and almost all smokers eventually develop what is called a "smoker's cough".
Find Out What's Causing Your Cough
It is important to find out the trigger for your cough. Coughs caused by the common cold usually go away in a few weeks. However chronic, persistent coughs may be caused by an underlying medical problem. For these cases, it is important to see your health care professional.
Originally published on Aug 27, 2017
