Natural Remedies for Cough - Safe, Gentle and Effective

Many Cough Natural Remedies are detailed in these pages

There are many different natural remedies for cough available, some of which you may already have available at home in the kitchen cupboards and some of which you may need to purchase.

I'm going to discuss many of these natural cough remedies here on my website, some of which are designed to cure the cough, while others are geared more towards soothing it.

Also you should know that the cough remedies that I discuss are really geared towards treating generally healthy people without underlying conditions. In other words the kind of coughing that happens when you get a cold or a flu.

I am not talking about natural cough remedies for the elderly, or for coughs associated with a chronic serious condition. Remeber though, that any cough, that starts out simple and mild can end up becoming a serious cough so do consult with a physician if required.

Children

A cough can be a life-threatening situation at any age but this is especially true for babies and children, and so it is important to be able to recognize when you should seek immediate medical help.The natural remedies for cough may not always be appropriate.

For this reason, I have devoted to pages to discussing both croup and whooping cough, which are both potentially serious for a child. If your child has a particularly severe cough (even if you do not suspect croup or whooping cough) you should still refer to the section on when to call help which is discussed on both of those pages.

Back to natural remedies

Generally speaking there are two types of cough. The first is known as a wet cough which means that it is productive in that it produces sputum. The second type is known as a dry cough which, conversely, means that it does not produce sputum

It is worth bearing these two characteristics in mind when selecting natural remedies for cough for you and your family to use as sometimes these distinguishing characteristics will aid in pointing to one or other cough remedies to try.

Precisely because there are so many natural remedies for cough I have divided them up into three pages. This page is the first and will deal with some of the most common homeopathic remedies for the natural treatment of a cough.

The second page is devoted to herbal remedies while the third discusses home remedies. I also found that there are some interesting stories and myths around how to stop coughing and finally there are a couple of old fashioned Hot Toddy Recipes for those that are so inclined.

Homeopathic Cough Remedies

The first thing to say about homeopathic natural remedies for cough is that there are many, and all of them need to be tailored to a person's actual individual symptoms.

Because of this, many people find it easier to buy a prepackaged combination homeopathic cough remedy in which case you just follow the directions on the container. Otherwise, choose the remedy that best matches your symptoms from those listed below. In an acute recent cough you need to take 30c four times a day and often times you will experience improvement in a matter of hours.

However if it is a more chronic and long-standing cough, then take it twice a day, but you will need to take it for longer to see the effects. Maybe 2 to 3 weeks.

As always with homeopathic remedies, once improvement starts then you can stop taking the remedy and let your body continue the process. If improvement plateaus or symptoms return then simply start taking the remedy again.

Antimonium Tartaricum

Often called Ant Tart for short, this is one of the most amazing natural remedies for cough in my experience and is particularly well-suited for a congested wet cough.

It is for the type of cough that produces a lot of rattling of sputum in the chest, and yet the person will have difficulty coughing the sputum up (expectorating). When they are able to bring some phlegm off their chest, it is generally copious in amounts and watery and frothy inconsistency and appearance.

The congestion and rattling in the lungs can be so severe that the person has difficulty even breathing at times. This homeopathic remedy tends to be indicated in older people with conditions like congestive cardiac failure or bronchitis but it is also a marvelous remedy for babies and young children with terribly rattily costs, which of course may well be the case with whooping cough or even croup.

Sometimes these children can cough so much that they may vomit and it can be noticed that the vomit has much frothy, watery phlegm in it.

Arsenicum Album

The people requiring these homeopathic natural remedies for cough may feel a burning pain in their chest with the cough and they will notice that the cough is soothed and they feel a little better if they sip warm drinks.

This is not the case for cold drinks. Cold drinks do not help the cough and in fact may even aggravate it.

The cough can be exhausting in itself which makes the sufferer feel even worse and he just wants the cough to be relieved.

The person, whether adult or child, may feel anxious and not want to be left alone, and will feeling restless and fidgety, finding it hard to sit or lie still. Generally, the cough will be worse after midnight and though the person is completely exhausted, because of the anxiety and restlessness sleep can invade them.

Bryonia Alba

Bryonia is a homeopathic remedy particularly suited for someone with a dry cough that is accompanied with a sharp stitching pain in the throat or chest area. Generally the chest pain will be worse when they breathe in because that expands the lungs and this is often the case with the condition known as pleurisy, and so this remedy can be very useful in that instance for bringing about some relief.

The sufferer tends to be thirsty and wants cold drinks which he will gulp down rather than sip, after which he will then not require another drink for a long period of time.

Drosera

Drosera is one of the marvelous natural remedies for cough suitable for a dry, barking cough that ends with the person gagging and retching and feeling as if they are going to vomit. This cough will be aggravated if the person lies down and will be worse generally speaking after midnight.

Hepar Sulphuris

Hepar Sulph is a homeopathic remedy that is indicated if the cough is barking and rattling in sound.

This type of cough tends to come on after the person has been outside in dry and cold air. Sputum is often produced and is yellowish in nature.

The person themselves will feel chilly , and will cough more if they are uncovered so they tend to wrap up warm. They will also be irritable.

If you think of the bear with a sore head archetype, you will get the picture.

Pulsatilla

Pulsatilla is one of the natural remedies for cough that is often suited to young children who are whining and moaning and possibly even weeping with their ailments. They will tend to be hot but not thirsty and they will cling to the parents as they really do not want to be left alone. They will also feel better in themselves, as well as get some temporary relief from the cough symptoms by being near an open window. Of course you may see variations of this picture in adults also, but I am just making the point that it is particularly common in children and babies.

The cough itself tends to produce yellowy or greenish phlegm, sometimes in large amounts, first thing in the morning but then as the day wears on, though they will still cough it will now be a dry and non-productive cough. This type of cough may be seen in adult bronchitic patients as they often produce much more sputum in the mornings.

This is another remedy where the cough will be worse when the person is lying down because it allows the secretions to build up in the lungs stimulating the cough reflex.

Rumex Crispus

This is one of the natural remedies for cough that is fantastic for a dry cough that start up as soon as a person lies down rather than starting when they have been lying down for a little while.

It is also worse if the person goes out in the cold air, as breathing in the cold air will aggravate it which tends to make it well-s suited to winter coughs.

There will be a tickling sensation in the throat and this will lead to a bout of coughing. If a cough starts with tickling in the throat this would be the first remedy to think of.

Spongia Tosta

Spongia is one of the natural remedies for cough suitable for someone with a dry and barking cough and so it is often useful in cases of children with croup

This is the type of cough that is temporarily eased from eating or drinking something warm.

Croup

It is worth mentioning that there is a particular homeopathic treatment regime that I have witnessed work very quickly in cases of croup. Even though I will now discuss this here, you should still read my croup page so that you know when it is time to seek immediate help. Sometimes though, it is possible to bring about very fast relief with this treatment protocol and so if you a child who seems to be prone to croup, it is probably worth keeping these remedies in stock.

I used to send mums home with these natural remedies for cough for their children in case they were ever needed and often they were and they worked their miracles.

There are three remedies involved and you will need a 30c potency and then you give them in a particular order, at a particular stage as detailed below.

• Aconitum Napellis (Aconite)
• Spongia Tosta (Spongia)
• Hepar Sulphuris (Hepar)

First Remedy-Aconite

Often croup will start at night and very suddenly so at this stage you need to give a dose of this immediately as this remedy can often stop things in their tracks that start in this way. If after a few minutes, symptoms persist it is time to move on to the second remedy.

Second Remedy-Spongi Tosta

The cough will now be the barking, seal like cough that is typical of croup. At this stage give a dose of Spongia and wait a few minutes. If there is no improvement, then repeat it. If there is improvement, continue to wait only repeating it if the same symptoms return.

In cases of croup , after the dry barking cough stage, it will often move into a looser productive type of cough. As soon as this happens, whether it is after 5 min or 30 it is time to start with the third remedy.

Third Remedy-Hepar Sulphuris

This is one of the natural remedies for cough that is indicated for someone also with the barking cough like in croup, but where it is also looser and rattily. Consequently, it is the remedy to be given if the dry cough does not cease completely, but instead moves into the loose and more productive phase common in croup. You may then need to continue with this remedy every few hours but if you follow your child's lead you will know when to stop.

It is important to know that you may not need all three remedies. It is quite possible that the cough will cease after the first or the second remedy. At whatever stage the cough stops, this is the stage to stop treatment. You do not need to give all three remedies if they are not required.

If you follow this simple regime you will help your child to resolve his croup swiftly and easily in the majority of cases.

As I have already said though, it is important to know when to seek help and this is discussed in more detail on the page specifically about croup cough as well as on the whooping cough page.

If you are looking for natural remedies for cough that you can make from ingredients that you probably already have in the kitchen cupboards or garden then you need to look at my home remedies and herbal remedies for cough pages as well as my hot toddy recipe page.

However, you might be interested to know that I also have a page on folklore associated with coughing which you might enjoy reading even if you decide not to follow any of the natural remedies for cough methods there.

From Natural Remedies for Cough Page to The Home Page

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