What Are The Best Home Remedies For A Cough
While there are many medicines available to help ease your cough, there are also a number of things you can do at home that dont require medication and can be very effective. Cough remedies include:
Most of the time over-the-counter and home remedies will effectively combat an irritating cough but if the cough persists or gets worse you should make an appointment with your healthcare provider. And its always a good idea to consult your healthcare provider when taking any medications, whether they are OTC or prescription, especially before giving them to children.
Risk Factors For Chronic Cough
The following are the risk factors for chronic cough:
- Cigarette smoking increases your likelihood of developing a chronic cough, even after you have quit the habit. Direct smoking or secondhand inhalation of tobacco smoke causes chronic inflammation in the airways and the lungs.
- Exposure to someone with a contagious respiratory infection increases your risk of picking up the infection easily.
- People with preexisting allergies have a tendency to break into uncontrollable coughing spells when exposed to specific allergens.
- Environmental irritants whether occupational or household may trigger a cough.
- Chronic lung diseases such as COPD, bronchiectasis , and asthma, and previous lung infections that left scars can increase susceptibility to developing a chronic cough.
- Women are more likely to develop chronic cough than men as they are born with a relatively sensitive cough reflex.
Heres What Causes All That Congestion
When a pathogen enters our airways, it latches to cells deep inside our noses and begins to multiply. As the virus does this, it irritates our nasal passages and sinuses, triggering inflammation, said Dr. Christopher Thompson, an otolaryngologist with Providence Mission Hospital in Orange County, California.
This signals your immune system to create mucus to wash the virus out of your system, Thompson said. That mucus, which builds up and creates sinus pressure, also moistens our irritated nose and and sinuses. We actually always have some mucus draining down the back of our throat, but the mucus produced during a cold is much thicker and stickier. It also becomes yellow and green a sign that our body is, in fact, fending off a virus.
Most people will recover from a cold within about seven days, but the congestion sometimes lingers even when the infection itself has cleared, and you might find yourself blowing your nose or clearing your throat for a week or two longer.
This is because your body produces a lot of extra mucus to flush the cold virus out of your system, Thompson said. It takes time for your body to clear out all that mucus, even after the virus itself is no longer in your system.
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Cold Symptoms Vs Sinus Infection Symptoms
Colds and sinus infections share many of the same symptoms, including a stuffy and runny nose, sinus pressure, headache and feeling tired. But there are a few symptoms to watch for that may mean youre suffering from a sinus infection and not just a cold. They are:
- Severe pressure and pain in your upper jaw or cheekbones
- A high or persistent fever
- Thick yellow or green mucus draining from your nose or down the back of your throat
The length of time youve been suffering with symptoms can also be an important clue. Cold symptoms will generally begin to improve in three to five days. If you find youre still suffering after 10 days or longer, its likely that youve developed a sinus infection. If your symptoms improve and then suddenly get worse again, thats another clue. This pattern suggests that what began as a cold or viral sinusitis has now developed into a bacterial sinus infection.
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What Is A Sinus Infection
A sinus infection, medically known as sinusitis or rhinosinusitis, occurs when your nasal cavities become infected, swollen, and inflamed. Fluid buildup in the sinuses can cause germs to grow, leading to a sinus infection.
Sinusitis is usually caused by a virus and often lasts even after other upper respiratory symptoms are gone. In some cases, bacteria or, rarely, fungus may cause a sinus infection.
Other conditions such as allergies, nasal polyps, and tooth infections can also contribute to sinus pain and symptoms.
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When A Sinus Infection Wont Go Away
While its true that sinus infections sometimes clear on their own, antibiotics can sometimes shorten their duration.
Talk with your doctor if your symptoms dont subside within 10 days or if you have persistent fevers, facial swelling or neck stiffness. As with colds, make sure you hit the sheets and get enough rest and drink your H2O. Proper hydration and nasal irrigation can ease sinus infection symptoms.
When I See Patients With Chest Colds They Usually Dont Need Antibiotics Instead I Tell Them About Some Simple Treatments They Can Do At Home
You probably know the feeling of having cold symptoms that move from your head into your chest. Many people call this a chest cold. The medical term for it is acute bronchitis. Bronchitis is an inflammation of the airways. Airways are the tubes in your lungs that air passes through. They are also called bronchial tubes. When these tubes get infected, they swell. Mucus forms inside them. This narrows the airways, making it harder for you to breathe.
Acute bronchitis is usually caused by the same viruses that cause the common cold or the flu. In these cases, the virus may affect your nose, sinuses, and throat first. Then, the infection travels to your bronchial tubes. A bacterial infection or an irritant in the air can also cause acute bronchitis.
The early signs of acute bronchitis often seem like the symptoms of a cold. That was the experience my patient Susan had. Susan is a 35-year-old woman. About two weeks before she came in for an office visit, she had started using over-the-counter cold medicine and saline nasal spray to treat a stuffy nose, a sore throat, and sinus pressure. Her sinuses had started to feel better, but then she developed the following symptoms:
- Persistent cough that brought up yellowish-green mucus
- Chest tightness
- Occasional low-grade fever
When these symptoms had not gone away after a week, Susan decided to make an appointment to see me.
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Saline Nasal Sprays And Irrigations
Other safe ways to help relieve sinus and nasal congestion and postnasal drip include nasal sprays and irrigations that contain saline solution. Saline solution is water that contains sodium chloride . There are many OTC saline nasal sprays that can be used to keep the nose moist and curb symptoms.
Nasal irrigation on the other hand, involves flushing your sinuses with a larger volume of saline solution. You can make your own irrigation solution with sodium chloride packets mixed with boiled or distilled water, or buy a pre-prepared saline wash kit at the pharmacy.
It is very important not to use tap or shower water to make your saline wash, unless the water has been boiled. Although rare, flushing your sinuses with unboiled tap water can lead to a serious infection that can potentially affect the brain.
Instead, you can use a bulb syringe, bottle sprayer, or neti pot for nasal irrigation. For best results, its recommended that you wash out each side of your nose with at least 200 mL of warmed saline solution. Check with your healthcare provider to see how often you should irrigate your sinuses.
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Ways to clear the lungs
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Causes Of Sinus Drainage
Sinus drainage can be classified into two categories. Sinus drainage can be a result of a cold or from allergies. In a cold, a bacterial infection is the case. If the reason is allergies, then the sinuses will swell because they are trying to get rid of the allergen that is present. An allergen can be anything that you have an allergy to, such as pets, foods, pollen, mold, etc. If a cold or allergies cause the sinuses to be inflamed for a long period of time, then there may be a risk of infection.
What Does Sinus Drainage Feel Like
Allergies and sinusitis can often feel very similar stuffy nose, runny nose, wheezing, watery eyes, etc. If your sinus drainage is the cause of the cold, then you will not feel relief from this for days. If allergies are to blame for the sinus drainage, then you will experience relief when you are no longer around the trigger.
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When To Seek Medical Assistance
Most sinus infections will go away on their own. According to Harvard Medical School, about 85% of sinusitis cases will clear up without the use of antibiotics. How can you know that your sinus infection falls into the 15% that need medical intervention?
Seek medical care if you experience a thick, colorful nasal discharge or facial pressure and pain for at least 10 days, or if your symptoms seem to improve then worsen, no matter the time period. Complications from a sinus infection are rare, but when they do occur, they are serious, including brain infections or abscesses.
You should seek immediate medical help if you experience:
- a fever over 102 F
- sudden and severe pain in the face or head
- double vision or trouble seeing
- confusion or problems thinking clearly
- shortness of breath
These could be warning signs of a more serious condition, like meningitis.
What Is Chest Congestion Causes Symptoms Treatment
Somehow, you managed to pick up the bug that was going around the office last week, or maybe it was the one your 8-year-old brought home from school that took you down. Now, after a few days, what started out as a sore throat and stuffy nose has turned into an uncomfortable cough that may bring up thick mucus from your lower airways. Your cough sounds deeper. These are some of the signs and symptoms of chest congestion. DayQuil SEVERE LiquiCaps⢠can relieve your chest congestion related to a cold or the fluâbut understanding what causes chest congestion and how to prevent it are equally as important as treating the symptom.
It can take up to a month to fully recover from lingering cold or flu symptoms, such as cough.1
What is Chest Congestion?
Chest congestion is the accumulation of mucus in the lungs and lower breathing tubes . It is usually accompanied by a wet, productive cough that brings up thick mucus. Chest congestion may cause you to hear or feel wheezing or crackling sounds when you breathe in and out.
What Causes Chest Congestion?
Infection with a cold or flu virus is among the most common causes of chest congestion and happens when the infection progresses from the upper respiratory tract â your nasal passages, sinuses and throatâinto the lower respiratory tractâyour breathing tubes and lungs.
Chest Congestion Treatment
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How to Prevent Catching and Spreading the Viruses that Cause Chest Congestion
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When Mucus In The Lungs Wont Go Away
Mucus typically gets a bad reputation, but it actually helps protect your body from the spread of bacteria and allergies by trapping germs.1 When we become sick, however, whether it is caused by the common cold, flu, or seasonal allergies, your mucus can change color and become thicker, making it more difficult for your body to clear independently. When this happens, you leave your lungs prone to infection and a worsening of symptoms.
Risk Factors For Sinus Drainage
There are a variety of risk factors for sinus drainage. People that are more likely to experience sinus drainage are people with a medical condition, such as cystic fibrosis or human immunodeficiency virus / acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a deviated septum, or an allergic condition. Sinus drainage is one of the main symptoms that is related to allergies.
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Neilmed Sinus Rinse Starter Kit
For effective removal of accumulated mucus, NeilMed Sinus Rinse Starter Kit can be an ideal product. This formulation allows users to achieve a deep rinse, cleaning out most of the accumulation to free out the airways. Whats more, the rinse also incorporates safe ingredients, making it a safe solution for users as young as 2 years of age.
The rinse is highly effective, providing relief from congestion for up to 6 hours after use. The only concern that some users have with the product is that it can be a hassle to use, especially when you are out or away from home.
Hot Beverages Or Soup
Staying hydrated with enough water can help loosen mucus, as water makes the substance thinner, per the American Lung Association. Additionally, a warm drink like decaf tea might be soothing if you’ve been coughing due to chest congestion and has the added benefit of being able to inhale some steam while you take a sip.
There’s also some scientific evidence behind the classic recommendation to sip chicken soup to ease chest congestionthough more research is needed to determine its effectiveness.
In a study published in October 2000, researchers tested the chicken soup cure in the lab and reported the results in the journal Chest. They found the soup recipe they tested had a mild anti-inflammatory effect, which might explain the benefit on chest congestion, though they couldn’t pinpoint an exact ingredient. .
The lead author of the 2000 Chest study, pulmonary disease researcher Stephen Rennard, MD, wrote another article to address many queries about using soup to treat COVID-19. Dr. Rennard acknowledged in the September 2020 Chest article that the study from 2000 probably received more widespread attention than was scientifically justified but wrote that treatments like homemade soup might have benefits beyond their medicinal value.
“Chicken soup, often made by a lengthy and loving process, can provide real psychosocial support,” Dr. Rennard wrote.
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Top 10 Best Over The Counter Sinus And Cough Medicine
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This list is undoubtedly the best over the counter sinus and cough medicine available in the market today. However, if you dont want to spend more time on filtering and finding which one is good over the counter sinus and cough medicine, then you should absolutely go for our Top list of the winner. which comes with all the basic features one could expect in a over the counter sinus and cough medicine.
Complications Of Chronic Sinusitis
Some people are troubled by frequent sinus infections, or continuous infection. Chronic sinusitis can linger for weeks or even months at a time. This can sometimes lead to serious complications, including infections in the bones and tissue near to the sinuses. Very rarely this infection can spread to the brain and the fluid around the brain. The person will be very ill and have swelling around the eyes.People with chronic sinusitis may have other problems which affect the nose, throat and ears at the same time, including:
- Middle ear infection and temporary deafness
- Post-nasal drip , which can lead to constant coughing, a sore throat and bad breath.
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Fever And Pain Reducers
If you have a fever and/or pain, take two acetaminophen tablets. After four hours, if you still have pain or fever, take two ibuprofen tablets. You can rotate these every four hours.
Valdez said it is very important to be careful when combining all these medicines to make sure you are not doubling up on a single agent. Some of these medications may contain a lower dose of any of the above mentioned agents, so check the labels carefully.
Remember those agents are: acetaminophen or ibuprofen for fever/pain, dextromethorphan for cough and pseudoephedrine or phenylephrine and guaifenesin for decongestants and expectorants.
Lastly, Valdez said to keep the following in mind:
- If you have a fever, do not go into work or school you should be fever free for 24 hours.
- Rest is the best medicine. Let the virus run its course if your body is run down it will take it longer to fight off the infection.
- To prevent sinus infections, get a flu shot , wash your hands often and cover your cough and sneeze.
Why Am I Coughing At Night
The first step to stopping a nighttime cough is figuring out why you have it, says Apurvi Thekdi, MD, an ear, nose, and throat specialist at Houston Methodist. Since treatments vary for different types of coughs, you need to know the root cause.
Dr. Thekdi says its also important to pay attention to the kind of cough you have , any related symptoms , and any possible triggers, such as changes to your diet or environment.
If youre ready to play detective, here are some of the common causes of coughing at night.
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