How to effectively treat cough in children and adults

Coughing is common in both children and adults. There are many reasons why you cough such as: due to changes in the weather, sinusitis, allergies, asthma... Accompanied by prolonged coughing will make your body feel more tired and uncomfortable. Coughing is a reflex that expels from the respiratory tract fluids, phlegm secreted by the bronchi or lungs or foreign objects from the outside such as food, dust, etc., but depending on the cause, the nature of the cough and the pathological characteristics are different.

Causes of cough in adults

The most common causes of cough in adults:

– Cough due to allergic rhinitis,

– Cough due to infection (bacteria, viruses)

– Cough due to exposure to irritants such as smoke, dust, cold air

– Cough due to medication, mainly Western medicine for treating high blood pressure (ACE inhibitors and beta blockers)

– Cough due to gastroesophageal reflux; cough due to lung diseases: interstitial lung disease, lung cancer, bronchiectasis, laryngitis, pleurisy...)

- Cough due to heart diseases: heart failure, mitral valve stenosis, aortic aneurysm...

Causes of cough in children

Any mother feels stressed and worried when her child coughs, especially persistent coughs that make many women feel restless in the middle of the night. The wheezing and heavy breathing of the child is a nightmare for mothers. However, if the mother knows how to monitor and listen to the child's coughs, it is very likely that she will detect the disease in her child's body early to treat the child promptly.

Baby has a cough due to a cold

– Baby has a hoarse voice, dry cough or wet cough regardless of day or night

– Other symptoms: Mother sees baby is listless, tired and baby complains of a sore throat, like something is crackling in the throat and feels headache, backache or leg pain. Baby has a runny nose, fever and sometimes feels nauseous.

Baby has a cough due to a cold

– Baby has a wet cough (cough with phlegm, choking on saliva) but breathing is not dry, wheezing, rapid breathing regardless of day or night

– Other symptoms: Sneezing, runny nose, watery eyes, and sometimes a low fever (temperature is usually 38.6 degrees Celsius)

Laryngitis:

– The cough is harsh, dry and different from other coughs and often starts at night. The cough of a child with laryngitis is not like any normal cough that mothers know.

– Other symptoms: This disease in children often gets worse at night and better during the day, the child may have a slight fever. In more severe cases, the child's face turns purple, breathing is harsh and there is a high-pitched sound when the child inhales, somewhat similar to the whistling sound when the child screams.

The child has a cough due to asthma, asthma

– The child's cough is persistent with whistling and wheezing sounds, may have lasted more than 10 days and become worse at night or there are signs of allergies to pollen, cold weather, animal hair or odors, dust and smoke.

– Other symptoms: The child breathes quickly, urgently and the breathing is dry, wheezing

Cough due to foreign objects in the respiratory tract:

Choking cough, purple face, wheezing, the person feels suffocated as if about to die. When the foreign object goes deep and stabilizes, the cough and difficulty breathing will subside. Foreign bodies causing inflammation cause cough with phlegm or blood, persistent cough, high fever, chest pain.

Pneumonia:

High fever, chills, chest pain, cough with thick, sticky, rust-colored phlegm. High white blood cells in the blood. Chest X-ray shows pneumonia.

How to prevent and treat cough at home

In the cold season, you need to keep your body warm, avoid sudden cold and humidity for a long time. Keep clean when eating, living, improve the environment, avoid pollution... Stay away from people with colds or acute rhinitis.

How to cure cough with honey steamed with whole kumquat:

Use kumquat, wash the skin, drain, cut the kumquat in half, remove seeds, slice thinly and put in a bowl. Then pour honey over the kumquat, mix well so that the kumquat absorbs the honey. Then steam or put in a pot to boil for about 10 - 15 minutes, until the kumquat is soft, mixed with honey into a thick syrup. Let it cool, drink 2-3 times a day, 1-2 teaspoons each time. When drinking, you can add a few grains of salt, do not swallow it immediately but hold it in your mouth for 5 seconds, let it slowly flow down your throat, helping to reduce sore throat, itching, and hoarseness caused by coughing.

How to cure cough from tamarind, ginger, lemon juice

To treat cough, adults should drink 4 times a day, one tablespoon each time. Children should also drink 4 times a day but one teaspoon each time. This syrup should be kept in the refrigerator.

How to cure cough from garlic

Use 2 - 3 cloves of garlic, peel and put in a small bowl, add 1 teaspoon of sugar and half a bowl of water. Boil over very low heat for about 15 minutes then turn off the stove. Wait until the water is slightly warm before eating.

Note: This article is for reference only. Please consult your doctor or specialist for further advice.