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Treatment of cough in children with folk remedies at home, effective recipes. How to quickly cure cough in adults and children: the most effective methods

On topic children's health Most parents have a reverent attitude. As soon as the baby coughs at least once, the parents begin to stress themselves out and imagine serious illnesses.

Less often, but it happens the other way around, when a child’s cough goes unattended by adults and leads to the development of severe chronic diseases.

Any healthy person or child can cough several times during the day and this is part of the norm. Cough is not an independent disease, but just one of the symptoms that can accompany various diseases and pathological processes in organism.

What kind of cough can a child have:

  • Physiological.

In this case, coughing is just defensive reaction to short-term exposure to a stimulus. Such a cough can occur when foreign objects enter the respiratory tract or when the climatic conditions are disrupted (for example, dry air in an apartment).

In infants, coughing or choking may occur after feeding when a small amount of breast milk enters the trachea during belching. Sometimes with a cough in the morning, mucus or phlegm that has accumulated during the night comes out. In children after six months, who are accompanied by increased salivation and, as a result, a cough reflex.

  • Pathological.

At various diseases coughing from a protective reflex turns into a pathology that poisons the life of a small patient and his parents.

What processes can cause a child to cough:

  • bacterial infection. Pharyngitis, laryngitis, tracheitis and other pathologies of the respiratory tract almost always occur with this symptom;
  • viral diseases (colds, ARVI, flu, etc.);
  • air, less often food allergies;
  • diseases of other organs and systems (GERD, heart defects, etc.).

IN childhood pathological cough is often associated with colds, it is often caused by a violation of the microclimate in the room or allergies. In any case, a child’s cough is almost never the only symptom of the disease.

When a cold occurs, it is accompanied by fever, runny nose and other manifestations of general intoxication of the body. the connection with the causative allergen is clearly visible, and additionally lacrimation, rash or watery discharge from the nose.

General principles of treatment

Cough - severe symptom, especially for young children. The cough reflex involves not only nerves, but also the respiratory muscles, which are still poorly developed in babies.

When a child has a hard time coughing up mucus and phlegm, it begins to accumulate in the lungs and cause severe complications. Besides, infants are more often in supine position, which also contributes to stagnation of sputum and the course of the disease is more severe than in adults.

Treatment of cough in children is carried out using the following methods:

The combination of these three therapy methods can cope with cough in a child of any age. Let's look at each of them in more detail and focus on the most effective ones.

Non-drug therapy

There are a number of specific requirements and rules regarding the regime of a sick child and maintaining appropriate conditions in his room:

  • Humidification of the atmosphere.

To do this, the room is regularly ventilated 4-5 times a day and always before bedtime. As a humidifier, you can use special devices (humidifiers, air ionizers), a nebulizer with saline solution. In the absence of such devices, during the heating season, place plates with mineral or salt water under the radiator or start an aquarium.

  • More liquid.

The production of mucus and phlegm occurs in special goblet cells. In order to enhance mucus production and make it more liquid, the child is asked to drink the maximum amount of liquid (water, juices, fruit drinks). Besides, drinking plenty of fluids helps to quickly remove bacterial breakdown products and toxins from the baby’s body, which significantly speeds up the treatment of cough.

  • Good nutrition and food regimen.

A balanced diet during illness will allow the baby to get everything essential vitamins and microelements without accompanying dietary supplements and synthetic vitamins.

  • Walks in the open air.

Child with cough, runny nose and low temperature up to 37.5 degrees can and should go outside. A walk helps calm the baby, and fresh air has a beneficial effect on the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract and strengthens the natural immune defense.

It is important to understand these recommendations correctly. A sick child needs treatment, attention and rest. You shouldn’t take a baby with a high fever out for a walk, and you shouldn’t lock a coughing child at home within four walls for a week.

Traditional medicine

It is very rare to cure a child’s cough using only traditional medicine. But old, proven methods work well in the initial stages of the disease or in combination with drug therapy.

What you can use:

  • Inhalations.

The only way to perform inhalation in a child of any age is a special nebulizer device. These devices come in two types (ultrasonic and compression). A special feature is that the medicinal substance is not dissolved in hot water, as with the steam method, but is sprayed into small particles.

Inhalation - what you need to know, how to do it correctly? Advice for parents - Union of Pediatricians of Russia.

Thanks to the nebulizer, the active properties are preserved medicinal substances without the risk of burning the baby's delicate mucous membranes with hot steam. The “breathe over hot potato or chamomile” methods are suitable for adults and should not be used in children, especially younger age. Read more about choosing an effective inhaler, and what medications to use for inhalation are described.

  • Mustard plasters.

Mustard plasters should not be applied to skin lesions, pustules or rashes on the body. This procedure can be performed on children after the first year of life. Their effect is a local irritating and warming effect, due to which blood flow increases, sputum discharge is facilitated and the immune response is enhanced.

Mustard plaster is not placed on the heart area or on the spine. For children with thin, sensitive skin, it is better to place a thin cloth or gauze between the skin and the mustard plaster. When coughing, mustard plaster is applied to the area chest and hold it starting from 1 minute, gradually increasing the interval to 5 minutes.


Warm baths (water temperature 38-40 degrees) effectively treat children's cough in the first stages of the disease and are good for its prevention. IN acute period, at high temperature foot baths is contraindicated. Contraindications are also the presence of pustules, abrasions, eczema on the legs

  • Compresses.

There are several types of compresses: dry, wet, alcohol, etc. When coughing, dry warming compresses are usually used, where alcohol or dimexide acts as a warming component.

How to make a compress: gauze is soaked in the active substance and placed on the throat, covered with a layer of polyethylene (for example, cling film), and a warm scarf on top. Keep for 15 minutes to half an hour.

  • Decoctions and tinctures.

Medicinal expectorant herbs (marshmallow, licorice, thyme, ivy, etc.) are used with great caution in children. Due to the high reactivity of the children's immune system, there is always a risk of complications in the form of an allergic reaction.

Drug therapy

If preventive measures and methods alternative medicine turned out to be ineffective, then you need to select medications under the supervision of a doctor. Let's take a closer look at how to cure a child's cough with medications.

Antitussives

Drugs in this group are designed to suppress the cough reflex. They are prescribed for coughs that are associated with irritation of the central nervous system, when the cough is caused not by phlegm, but by irritation of nerve receptors. In children they are often prescribed for measles, whooping cough and some other infectious diseases.

Antitussives are used to suppress a dry cough without phlegm. Prescribed only with the consent of a specialist, after preliminary diagnosis.

What are they?

  • Central action(narcotic and non-narcotic). Narcotics are rarely used, only in cases of severe pathologies and for strict indications in a hospital setting. Non-narcotic drugs of central action (Sinekod, Stoptussin, Bronholitin) for young children are produced in the form of drops and syrups, there are also tablet forms.
  • Peripheral(Libexin). It comes in both syrup and tablet form. For the treatment of dry children's cough It is permissible to use only as prescribed by a doctor.

A peculiarity of drugs in this group is that they are not prescribed together with expectorants and mucolytics. This happens because with the simultaneous liquefaction of sputum and the use of an antitussive, mucus and sputum will stagnate and complications will develop (for example, congestive pneumonia).

Mucolytics and expectorants

For wet coughs and coughs with thick, difficult to separate sputum, this group of drugs is chosen.

What these medications do is they break down the disulfide bonds in the sputum, causing it to become thinner.

In addition, they increase the activity of the respiratory muscles, due to which the mucus quickly unsticks from the walls and leaves the bronchi and lungs. Some mucolytics have a mild anti-inflammatory effect.

Let's remember the most known drugs this group and let’s look at their features:

  • Lazolvan. Active substance ambroxol. Available in syrup form. It is recommended to use for the treatment of cough with difficult to separate sputum in children over 2 years of age.
  • ACC (acetylcysteine). Prescribed for acute and chronic diseases lungs, which are accompanied by the formation of viscous mucus. Prescribed to children after 2 years. When using, it is recommended to drink more fluid.
  • Gedelix. Plant syrup based on ivy leaf extract. Approved for use in children from the first days of life after consultation with a doctor.
  • Fluimucil. Contains acetylcysteine. Has the ability to liquefy sticky sputum. It can be prescribed to children from the first days of life after consulting a doctor.
  • Bromhexine. It has an expectorant and weak antitussive effect. Stimulates the discharge of sputum and reduces its viscosity. Recommended for use in children after three years of age. Prescribe with caution to patients with hepatic and renal failure in the anamnesis.

Dry cough is a rather painful condition for children. The baby is constantly tormented by attacks, but there is no relief. You can help him with quite traditional medications from the pharmacy, but many parents prefer folk remedies that will quickly and effectively relieve the child from suffocating attacks. About such recipes from the arsenal alternative medicine we'll talk about it in this article.


Peculiarities

Cough is not an independent disease, it is just a symptom indicating that something has gone wrong in the child’s body. And, before deciding on the treatment of this symptom, you need to understand that a reasonable approach is when the cause is treated, not the effect. To find it, see your doctor.


Cough in children is most often associated with acute respiratory diseases, influenza. However, it is also possible that foreign objects may enter the respiratory tract. In addition, children quite often suffer from allergic cough. There is even a nervous cough reflex, mainly in children who are hyperexcitable and restless, subject to severe stress.


Depending on the duration, the cough can be acute, protracted, subacute and chronic. An illness that torments a baby for no longer than 2 weeks is called acute. If a child has been coughing for about a month, doctors say it is protracted, and if it has been coughing for about 2 months, it is subacute. If you have not been able to cope with the problem for 8 weeks, then the child chronic illness, which will require long-term and serious treatment.

Based on timbre, coughs are divided into dry and wet. Dry is quite easy to recognize, since it is unproductive or unproductive, in other words, it is not accompanied by sputum production. Sometimes it has the character of a bark, since the sound is very similar to a dog barking.


The cough reflex with a dry cough occurs in response to irritation of the respiratory mucosa caused by viruses. That is why dry cough is considered one of the clear signs the onset of influenza or ARVI. The allergic reflex is also usually dry. But in this case, irritation of the receptors is caused by allergens that the child inhales along with the air (pollen, particles household chemicals, contaminated air, tobacco smoke, toxic fumes).


With a nervous cough, the cause of receptor stimulation should be sought in neuropsychic disorders, in psychosomatics. Neither medications nor folk remedies will be effective for this, since it is the nervous system that needs to be treated, not the respiratory organs.

Dry cough is characterized by an increased frequency of attacks, it especially affects the child at night. Many children complain of chest pain.


Parents should know that different types Coughs are treated completely differently. Wet requires the use of mucolytic and expectorant drugs, and with dry it is important to reduce the intensity of the cough reflex. With regard to the choice of folk remedies for treatment, the same rule applies. If a mother finds it difficult to determine the nature of her child’s cough, you should not treat it at random, it is better to consult a doctor.

Dr. Komarovsky will talk about the types, features and dangers of dry cough in children in the next video.

Causes of dry cough

As already mentioned, the most “harmless” and easily removable cause of dry cough is initial stage influenza or acute respiratory viral infection. This happens most often, but do not forget that dry cough is also accompanied by other diseases, many of which are best not even thought about treating at home:

  • Bronchial asthma. The dry exhausting reflex in this disease has a paroxysmal character. Often attacks are accompanied by suffocation; they require immediate use of medication.
  • Pneumonia (lung inflammation). A non-productive cough with this disease is muffled, monophonic with frequent attacks, which intensify if the child actively moves, runs, and breathes more often.
  • Various inflammations of the trachea, bronchi and larynx. The cough can be barking, rough, and accompanied by hoarseness.
  • Dry pleurisy. With it, a dry cough is very painful, the child is limited in movements, since any change in body position causes severe pain in the chest.
  • Malignant neoplasms (tumors) in the tissues of the respiratory organs. The reflex with this problem can manifest itself in different ways, so this condition is the most difficult to diagnose.
  • Whooping cough. A nonproductive cough with this disease quite often ends in vomiting. This reflex is practically not treatable with medication, but goes away on its own over time.
  • Allergy. The cough reflex is permanent; coughing does not change the timbre or depth of sound. The mucous membranes of the nasopharynx have a grayish pale tint.
  • Pulmonary tuberculosis. A nonproductive cough in this disease is long-lasting and protracted. Sometimes parents confuse it with chronic. This condition requires immediate attention to the hospital, since tuberculosis is dangerous and contagious.


When you can’t get by with folk remedies alone

Any evidence of a dry cough should alert sensible parents and force them to make an appointment with a doctor for their child. If the doctor confirms that the symptom is caused viral infection, you can treat it at home with a clear conscience, including folk remedies.

However, statistics are a stubborn thing, and they say that every fifth child whom their mother brought to the doctor with complaints of a dry cough actually inhaled a foreign body, for example, a small part from a toy. In this situation, folk remedies will not help; you need to remove the object as soon as possible before severe inflammation begins.


A dry cough may be a symptom coronary disease hearts, and also indicate problems with hematopoiesis. These conditions require highly specialized treatment, naturally, not with antitussives and non-traditional cough recipes.

That is why it is important to visit a doctor and undergo the necessary additional diagnostics.


Effective folk remedies and methods

When treating dry cough at home, parents should be very careful and respond to the slightest changes in the child’s condition. Dry cough - very insidious symptom. Thus, laryngitis, which is accompanied by this type of symptom, can result in a complication in the form of false croup. Without a quick response from parents and timely medical care the child may suffocate. It is better if, before choosing a prescription for alternative medicine, the mother still consults a doctor.

There are a great many recipes for dry cough. Let's look at the most famous, popular and proven by generations of children.


Pine buds

You can buy them at any pharmacy or prepare them yourself. In boiling milk (half a liter) you need to add a tablespoon of aromatic pine buds. This pine drink should be infused for at least 3 hours, then strained and given to the child a quarter glass several times a day.


Onions with milk

A couple of medium-sized onions should be cut into rings or half rings and boiled in milk until tender (the rings should become soft). The drink is cooled, filtered and a teaspoon of linden honey is added. Single dosage- a tablespoon, the child should be given water frequently - every two hours for three days. Usually this is enough for the cough to soften and its intensity to decrease. If the child is under 3 years old, you should not put honey in the drink, as this can cause allergies. Replace the bee product with sugar or fructose.

Mustard

Useful product, which will help quickly cure dry cough. A tablespoon of mustard seeds should be mixed with a spoonful of vegetable oil, a spoonful of honey and two spoons of 9% vinegar. Heat it all up, but don’t boil it. Mix two tablespoons of flour into the resulting mixture and form into flat cakes. Place damp gauze and a layer of cling film on the baby's chest and back, lay out warm mustard cakes and cover with cotton wool. This compress can be left on for 4 hours.

The procedure should not be performed on children under any circumstances. infancy, since all the ingredients are strong allergens, and heating can disrupt the baby’s heat exchange.



Barley

100 grams of barley grains are ground into powder, poured with 250 ml of water and brewed in a water bath for 30 minutes. Then the resulting liquid is infused, filtered and given to the child warm several times a day. Age restrictions There is practically no such recipe; it can be given to children under one year old and to children older.


Pine nuts

Boil 50 grams of unpeeled in milk (1 liter) pine nuts or a whole pine cone. Strain, cool. Give the child 1-2 tablespoons 5-6 times a day.


Garlic ointment

Several large cloves of garlic need to be chopped or grated fine grater, mix with badger fat or Vaseline oil, leave in the refrigerator and rub on the heels of a child with a dry cough at night.


Ginger

Ginger root should be washed, peeled, grated or finely chopped. This mass for one serving of drink will be required on the tip of a teaspoon. Pour boiled, but not boiling, water over the ginger and let it brew. If necessary, add currant juice, raspberries, honey or sugar and give the child a drink at night.


Inhalations with essential oils

To carry out such procedures for non-productive coughs, it is best to use eucalyptus and fir oils. You shouldn’t add too much of them, 1 drop is enough. Use together with oils for inhalation medicinal plants and herbs that have antitussive properties - sage, coltsfoot.


Compresses

Compresses for unproductive coughs can be made from cottage cheese or calcined salt. The main rule is no compresses or inhalations if the child has a fever. First you need to reduce the fever, and only then move on to warming procedures.


  • In a home where a child with a nonproductive cough lives, it is necessary create optimal conditions environment. They will help you recover faster, and in the future they will be an excellent prevention of respiratory diseases. The air in the apartment should not be too dry. To do this, use special humidifiers, bringing the humidity level to 50-70%. If you don’t have such a device, you can hang wet towels over the radiators and make sure they don’t dry out.
  • The air temperature that promotes recovery is not higher than 19 degrees. The room must be ventilated several times a day and wet cleaning done at least once a day.
  • For inhalations, which are very effective for dry coughs, use special device- an inhaler. If, as half a century ago, you cover your baby’s head with a blanket and force him to breathe over boiled potatoes, you can complicate his already significant health problems with burns to the mucous membranes of the nasopharynx, trachea and bronchi.
  • The best procedure that should accompany treatment nonproductive cough- plenty of warm drinks. It will promote the formation of sputum, which will turn the cough into a productive one and the child will recover much faster.
  • If folk remedies, despite all your efforts, cannot cope with a dry cough, you need to consult a doctor. The “critical” period is considered to be 2 weeks from the start of therapy. If there is no relief, sputum does not form, the intensity of the cough does not decrease, additional symptoms(temperature), this is a reason to stop home treatment and proceed to the medications prescribed by the doctor.
  • Potions
  • Folk remedies

Very often, parents do not know how to treat a child’s cough when it is exhausting, keeps him awake at night, and causes vomiting. It is possible that the throat is inflamed and the lymph nodes are enlarged when ingested foreign body into the respiratory tract. Sometimes it appears nervous cough, provoked by an inflammatory process in nervous system, allergic reaction or the development of diseases in the intestines, stomach, heart.

Before learning how to treat a beginning cough and select a therapeutic course, it is important to identify real reasons and monitor at what hours the baby coughs most often and whether sputum comes out.


It is necessary to treat a child’s incipient cough by providing bed rest, ventilating the room and avoiding excessive dry air to avoid the disease developing into bronchitis and laryngitis.

Medicines

Cure a cold at home is not easy, since therapy must be comprehensive after diagnosis accurate diagnosis pediatrician Parents need to take into account the weight and age of their children when dispensing tablets and syrups, and also do not neglect the instructions, doses, and doctor’s recommendations.

  1. Antitussive drugs (non-narcotic, narcotic) are prescribed for obsessive attacks. Give caution to children under one year of age, there may be side effects(constipation, addiction).
  2. Expectorants (Kudrin, Glycodin, Codelac, Panatus, Sinekod). But such drugs can only intensify attacks and are not used in the treatment of upper respiratory tract diseases. So, a slight cough in the evening closer to night can turn into an attack and obsession.
  3. Drugs plant origin, such as licorice, elecampane, pine, plantain, thermopsis or for combined effects with the addition chemical substances(sodium benzoate, potassium bromide).
  4. Mucolytics (tablets, lozenges, drops) with an expectorant effect to restore the elasticity of the mucous membrane, thin the mucus, without leading to its accumulation and increase in volume: Pertussin, Doctor Mom, Doctor Theiss, Bronchicum, Gedelix, Eucabal, Mucosol, Prospan, Lazolvan , Mukobene, ACC, Ambrobene, Flavamed.
  5. Mint lozenges for producing a dry cough into a wet one (Thermopsis, Mucaltin, Tusuprex).
  6. Syrups for children under one year of age with ARVI: Pertussin, Doctor Mom, Ambroxol, Bromhexine.
  7. Breastfeeding for sore throat, excessive dry mouth, to thin mucus and remove it from the respiratory tract (licorice, marshmallow).
  8. Immunomodulatory drugs (Viferon, Kipferon, Anaferon, Arbidol) to strengthen the immune system.

When a dry attack begins, children under 2 years of age are additionally recommended physical procedures: electrophoresis, magnetic therapy, inhalations, chest massage.

If a manifestation is noticed chronic disease in newborns up to 1 year - an increase in temperature to 39-40 degrees, shortness of breath appears, then parents need to urgently call a doctor or an ambulance, even if the cough is dry and has just begun.

Folk recipes

At home, when answering the question of how to treat a child’s cough, compresses, inhalations, tinctures, and decoctions of medicinal herbs are applicable.

Often attacks begin against the backdrop of the spread of the inflammatory process into the bronchi, so the cough can be intrusive, unpleasant symptoms appear, and comprehensive treatment needs to be started more quickly. These recipes are suitable for use at home:

  • Garlic mixture (crushed garlic + water) for rubbing feet and palms.
  • Honey with radish. Cut out the center of the radish, pour in honey, leave for 2 hours. Give syrup to children 1 tsp. 3 times a day. You can pour honey into the radish (cut into slices) and leave until the juice is released.
  • Onion. Prepare syrup. Grind the onion, squeeze out the juice, leave with added sugar. Start giving 2 tbsp.
  • Take herbal mixture (thyme, chamomile, linden) in equal proportions, pour boiling water (1 glass), strain. Give to children warm or inhale with the addition of honey and lemon (1 tsp) if there is no allergy.
  • Grind the lemon in a meat grinder, add honey (2 tsp), give to children in the form of syrup.
  • Honey and mustard (compress), prepare a flat cake. Mix flour, mustard powder, vegetable oil. Add vodka. Knead the dough. Place the resulting cake in a gauze bandage and apply it to the chest and back overnight until redness and a slight burning sensation appear.
  • Boil potatoes in their skins, mash with a fork, make a flat cake, apply to your back and chest, wrapped in cloth. Leave for 1 hour.
  • Eucalyptus (leaf), 2 tbsp. pour boiling water, leave for 2 hours, give to children to gargle. The remedy will give good effect with adenoids in the mouth.
  • Aloe juice (freshly squeezed): put 2 drops into the nose at night to reduce adenoids.
  • Goat milk. Give babies water 2 times a day.
  • Grape juice + honey + lemon (passed through a meat grinder) + radish (grated) + vegetable oil. To calm a cough.
  • Hercules porridge (cooked in milk) + mashed potatoes. To relieve bronchospasm.
  • Collection: sea buckthorn, thuja, oil tea tree. Helps with throat and nose congestion. For the purpose of rinsing, children are given the collection with the addition of salt water to drink.
  • Celandine (infusion) for lubricating the laryngeal mucosa with the addition of vegetable oil. Pour boiling water over the herb (1 tbsp), leave, instill 2-3 drops 2 times a day, mix with oil.
  • Badger fat containing vitamins A, B, fatty acids helps with many respiratory diseases and quickly suppresses coughs associated with colds, bronchitis, and tuberculosis. Proven and safe fat can be purchased at the pharmacy. 1 tsp add to hot milk for rapid elimination sputum. To enhance the effect, you can add honey.

Useful for a child’s cough that has started herbal infusions And breast training(thyme, coltsfoot, plantain). Immediately upon appearance unpleasant symptom You can give children hot milk with the addition of honey (1 tsp) or mineral water (1x1). If a paroxysmal nervous cough appears, it is useful burnt sugar with added milk. Melt a tablespoon of sugar over heat until dark brown, and give to children in the form of candy for complete absorption in the mouth.

Drinks (rich fruit compotes, fruit drinks, jelly) should be given to children constantly to improve their well-being and increase sputum discharge at any stage of the disease. It is important to quickly get rid of dry and barking cough, which can negatively affect the immature nervous system.

It is not recommended to give badger fat children under 3 years old! You can lightly rub the chest, feet and back with fat, but only from 1.5 years old, melt the fat in a water bath and rub in the emulsion to warm it up. Today, fat is sold in the form of capsules in pharmacies, but before use, you must first read the instructions.

It is useful to treat a beginning cough in a child by warming it up, by wetting gauze bandage castor oil, apple cider vinegar(dilute with warm water) or alcohol, applied to the back and chest in the form of compresses.

If a child begins to cough (especially a newborn), then it is better to abandon dubious home methods in order to avoid the development of inflammation in the lungs and other diseases. The appointment of a course of treatment and selection of medications is carried out exclusively by the attending pediatrician in order to alleviate symptoms and eliminate foci of inflammation.

Colds in children are not uncommon. The cough reflex leads to self-cleansing of the body from accumulated harmful microorganisms and microbes. But it is important to know what kind of cough it is in order to properly help children with initial stage, and try to produce a transition from dry to wet.

Doctors know what to do, so they advise:

  • Rub the chest, put mustard plasters (jars) to thin the sputum, if there is no high temperature.
  • You can inhale with aromatic oils and give sedatives at night for dry and frequent coughs.
  • If sputum does not come out, then mucolytics and expectorants are used for a dry, incipient cough.
  • It is useful to massage the back and steam the legs if there is no fever.
  • The sputum itself is excessively viscous in composition, and when obstructive bronchitis quickly clogs the bronchi. It is necessary to thin the sputum using medicines with coughing, and give the kids more fluids to drink.
  • When a whistling or paroxysmal cough appears that lasts up to 4 minutes, medications are used to calm the nervous system.
  • When using medications, before treating a child’s cough, you need to take into account the child’s weight and age. For example, saline solution is used based on 25 mg per 1 kg of body weight, regardless of the disease.
  • At false croup, intermittent breathing, bluish skin and ignorance of how to treat a cough in a child under one year old, it is necessary to call a doctor at home or an ambulance.

Often, cough in children is triggered by allergies to dust, plants, animals, and household chemicals. Before starting treatment, it is important to identify the causes of cough, visit your local pediatrician and find out what to give your child at home.

Perhaps it will be investigated first clinical analysis blood for allergies, urine and feces were analyzed for helminth eggs. Indicates the presence of allergies increased amount eosinophils and leukocytes in the blood. Treatment will be required antihistamines(Suprastin, activated carbon, calcium gluconate).

Doctors often prescribe antibiotics to a child for coughing, which negatively affect immune system and intestines. For example, Cefazolin, which acts exclusively on bacteria: pneumococci, coli, salmonella, staphylococcus, gonococcus. The drug is active and non-toxic, but is useless when infected by viruses.

Prevention

As a preventive measure against infectious (viral) diseases, it is useful to:

  • carry out hardening from an early age;
  • strengthen immunity;
  • try not to visit kindergartens during the epidemic, avoid contact with cold children and adults;
  • wash your hands, vegetables and fruits more often;
  • water your feet more often cold water in summer;
  • do not allow the presence of children in a smoky room;
  • dress according to the weather;
  • normalize good nutrition with sufficient vitamins and minerals;
  • fight colds, try to minimize attacks at the initial stage, minimize provoking factors and ask your doctor how to treat a beginning cough without resorting to dubious alternative treatments.

It is important to ventilate the children's room more often, to prevent babies from breathing through their mouths, in order to avoid foreign objects getting into the throat and bronchi, which is when a strong cough can begin.

It can be caused by a number of reasons, and there are many methods of treating it. But besides medications Traditional medicine also helps in the fight against cough. Efficiency this method treatment has been tested for years, and there are a minimal number of contraindications and a mild effect on children's body, made this method incredibly popular. Many modern parents prefer to limit the amount their child consumes. chemicals Therefore, they choose to treat cough in children with folk remedies quickly and effectively. This article presents several of the most popular and effective traditional medicines that can become your “lifesaver” in treating your baby.

Egg potion

Preparing the mixture is quite simple:

  1. Boil a glass of milk.
  2. Add a tablespoon of honey and the same amount of butter.
  3. After that, beat egg yolk and mix it with the previous ingredients.
  4. Add baking soda to the mixture using the tip of a knife.

You need to take a teaspoon of the mixture three times a day.

Milk mixture

Milk-based mixture also allows you to quickly eliminate cough. To prepare it, you will need half a liter of milk, brought to a boil, and a tablespoon of pine buds. The ingredients need to be mixed and allowed to brew for an hour. The child should drink the decoction a day.

Lemon with honey and glycerin

This recipe will also help cure a cough, the cause of which has not even been established.

  1. Wash the lemon thoroughly and pierce its peel in several places.
  2. Boil the lemon. This will take no more than 5 minutes.
  3. Squeeze the juice out of it and add 2 tbsp. l. glycerin.
  4. Pour the mixture into a glass with a capacity of at least 250 ml.
  5. Top up the glass with liquid honey.
  6. Let the mixture sit for 3-4 hours.

Accept this mixture Only for children who do not suffer from allergies to bee products. The dosage is usually a teaspoon of the product 3 times a day. However, it can be increased in case of severe cough, as well as in case of protracted nature of the disease.

A mixture of honey, glycerin and lemon has a number of beneficial properties.

  1. Moistening the throat with glycerin, which reduces the intensity of the cough.
  2. Supporting immunity with vitamin C.
  3. Antibacterial effect of honey on infectious agents.

Onion broth

This recipe was popular at the beginning of the last century and is still used by parents.

  1. Peel 2-3 onions and chop them.
  2. Pour milk (400 ml) over the onion pieces and boil for 5 minutes.
  3. Add honey - 2 teaspoons.

You need to take a tablespoon of the infusion every hour until the acute symptoms disappear.

Black radish with honey

Radish has been used to treat coughs in children since ancient times. To prepare the composition, you will need black radish, which you need to thoroughly wash and cut out the core from it to make something like a cup. Place 2 teaspoons of liquid honey into the resulting depression and leave to stand for a while. After some time, juice will begin to release in the “cup”, which must be thoroughly mixed with honey. Children can be given a teaspoon of the mixture 3 times a day for 1-2 weeks.

You can use the same radish several times by simply adding new honey.

Radish with milk

This option is in no way inferior to the previous one. Take 2 radishes, peel them and cut them into small pieces. Place in a jar, alternating each layer of radish with a tablespoon of honey. After 6-8 hours, a mixture of juice and honey will form in the jar, which must be poured into a separate container. A teaspoon of the mixture plus a tablespoon of milk is a single dose for use. You can give your child radish with milk three times a day.

Mustard and honey

Using these products, you can prepare several cough remedies.

  1. Grind the mustard grains to make 1 tablespoon. Add the same amount of honey and sunflower oil. Stir and pour in 2 tbsp. l. table vinegar. The mixture must be heated in a water bath to +50 degrees and add 2 tbsp. l. flour. Knead the resulting mixture into a dough. After this, you need to place a dough cake on the baby’s back and chest. To do this, follow a certain procedure: put wet gauze on the body, then cling film, then dough, then cloth and cotton wool. You can secure the compress with a scarf. After 6 hours, the cake must be removed by wiping the area under the compress with a dry cloth. You need to do a similar compress 3-4 times.
  2. Mix 3 tbsp. l. sunflower oil, the same amount of goat fat (buy at the market) and honey, 3 tbsp each. vinegar and mustard powder. Divide the resulting mixture into three equal parts and make cakes that need to be placed on the chest (1 piece) and on the back (2 pieces). This compress can be left overnight; you can do it every day, but no more than 5 days in a row.
  3. Take one tablespoon each of aloe juice, dry mustard, vodka, honey, interior fat (vegetable oil) and flour. Mix all ingredients and place on water bath. Stir the slightly heated mixture again and form into cakes. They need to be placed on the back in the projection of the lungs. Be sure to place gauze under the cakes and on top of them, and cover with film on top. Swipe this procedure two days in a row. Distinctive feature This version of the compress is that it is simply impossible to cause a burn to the baby with its help. Therefore, it can be used even in small children.

Other folk recipes for coughs

If the above recipes do not suit your child, you can use other cough control methods. We offer you a number of recipes that can be prepared at home.

Barley decoction for the treatment of dry cough in children

Pour 20 gr. ground barley grains with 1 cup boiling water and let it brew for 5 hours. After this, the infusion must be boiled for 10 minutes. To treat dry cough in children, the decoction should be taken 1 tbsp. 5 times a day.

Honey and olive oil

Take 2 tbsp. honey and oil and mix. Give your child a teaspoon three times a day. This method will enhance the coughing up of phlegm.

Potato inhalation

Boil regular potatoes along with peelings. Drain the potatoes into a small bowl and place your child over it. The main task is for the baby to breathe in pairs for at least 15 minutes. It is best to cover his head with a scarf or towel so that the steam does not escape in all directions, but goes directly into the baby’s mouth. After such inhalation, be sure to put the baby to bed. Do not forget that the steam should not burn.

Radish with sugar

In order for the radish to release its juice, you need to sprinkle it generously with sugar. After the chopped vegetable has stood for several hours, liquid will appear in the container, which should be given to the child every hour, a tablespoon.

Blackcurrant and honey

Hoarseness and severe coughing attacks can be eliminated with the help of blackcurrant juice and honey. To do this, take half a glass of juice and a glass of honey, stir and let stand for a few minutes. Then you can give the mixture to your baby. Optimal dose– 1 tbsp. l. three times a day.

Viburnum decoction

A healing decoction of viburnum can help you with tracheitis and bronchitis; you can give it to children with caution. To prepare the decoction, you need to take viburnum berries (100 g) and a glass of liquid honey. All this must be mixed thoroughly. You need to take the mixture 4 times a day, one tablespoon at a time. You can also drink it with tea or warm water.

Calamus root

Another recipe that allows you to quickly get rid of coughing attacks is an infusion of calamus roots. To prepare it, you need to take 200 ml of boiling water and a tablespoon of roots. The infusion should cool, after which it can be taken half an hour before meals, 2 tablespoons. It is recommended to drink the infusion all day, drinking 500 ml.

Infusion of coltsfoot

This infusion will help you relieve your baby of a dry cough. It’s easy to prepare: take a tablespoon of coltsfoot and pour a glass of boiling water over it. Ready product Give the baby a tablespoon every hour and a half.

Inhalation with herbal decoction

You can carry out inhalation using a mixture of coltsfoot, oregano or soda solution. You can also add menthol or eucalyptus essential oil.

Milk with soda

Even young modern mothers know this recipe, because it is the most popular and widespread, and also very easy to prepare. Take a glass of hot milk, add a teaspoon of butter, soda on the tip of a knife and warm mineral water. If you drink this remedy in a hot form, so that it does not burn the throat, the effect can be seen after the first dose. Milk and soda also help a lot - a drop of soda per glass of hot milk.

Mustard and vodka

This recipe allows you to get rid of a prolonged cough. You need to make a compress for your child from a tablespoon of dry mustard, honey, flour and sunflower oil (all in a tablespoon) with the addition of 1.5 tbsp. l. vodka. The mixture must be thoroughly mixed and heated in a water bath. The compress should be placed on a layer of gauze in the chest area, covered with gauze and cellophane on top. You need to do this procedure for several days until the cough disappears.

The article contains many recipes that will help cure your child of almost any cough. Only, as with the use of medicines, in treatment with folk remedies you need to be careful and in proportion. If your child is prone to allergies, then you need to choose a recipe that does not contain allergenic components.

When making compresses for your baby, remember that they cannot be applied at a fever. And you need to observe the child’s reaction; if the skin turns red and irritation begins, immediately remove the compress and wipe the skin with water.

Treatment with folk remedies can also be carried out in combination with those traditional drugs that your healthcare professional prescribed for you. Therefore, be sure to get specialist advice.

Remember that a child’s cough needs to be treated from the first days of its appearance. This way you will be able to avoid negative complications.

Cough natural protective function, helping to cleanse the respiratory tract. It can be caused by allergies, short-term irritants (foreign objects, dust) or be a symptom of a disease. Similar phenomenon It greatly exhausts children, so it is not worth leaving a cough without treatment.

Folk remedies are more easily tolerated by children than chemicals. However, before you begin to treat a cough, you need to find out its cause and nature. You should consult a pediatrician who will determine the nature of the phenomenon and prescribe appropriate treatment.

Causes of the phenomenon

Usually the causes of cough are determined by its nature. It is unproductive and dangerous when it is dry. Such a cough does not help remove pathogens from the respiratory tract, injures the throat and causes pain to the child. It can be called infectious disease, swelling of the larynx or trachea. Sometimes observed in the case of spontaneous stimuli:

  • tobacco smoke;
  • dry air;
  • presence of chemicals;
  • hit foreign object into the respiratory tract.

At proper treatment dry cough is replaced by a wet one. In this case, the lungs are cleared of mucus, and the child coughs up sputum. Copious discharge, mixed with blood or pus, cloudy or colored, often indicates inflammatory process. This could be bronchitis, pneumonia or even tuberculosis, which must be treated in a hospital.

The cause of the cough may be an allergy. At the same time, he is accompanied frequent sneezing, itching in the throat or nose, slight runny nose. There is no increase in temperature or severe pain, as with the disease. This cough appears only in the presence of an allergen and is paroxysmal. Can provoke the development of bronchitis, often developing into bronchial asthma, therefore, it requires timely detection and elimination of the irritant.

General principles of treatment

Having determined the nature of the phenomenon, you can begin treatment and alleviation of the symptom. To eliminate a dry cough, the child is prescribed plenty of fluids and warm compresses (if there is no increase in temperature). The main task is to transform it into a wet cough.

When wet cough The following methods can be used:

  • inhalation;
  • rubbing;
  • massage;
  • jars and mustard plasters;
  • means that help thin and remove mucus.

In order for the treatment to be more productive, the child should be provided with optimal conditions in the room.

  • Regular ventilation several times a day. Must be carried out in the absence of the baby.
  • High indoor humidity. Dry air provokes coughing attacks and drying out of the mucous membranes.
  • Drink plenty of fluids. Any liquid except sparkling water will do.

If the child is recovering and there is no increase in body temperature, then you can spend time going for a walk. Its duration depends on weather conditions and the condition of the child. Fresh air will bring relief to the baby and help quickly cure the cough.

Recipes based on medicinal plants

Medicinal herbs and plants have been known for their healing qualities. They have anti-inflammatory, immunostimulating, analgesic and other beneficial properties. It is recommended to treat cough in children with decoctions and infusions, the preparation of which does not take much time and effort.

  • Boil the pine needles, cool. Drink the resulting tea several times a day. Very effective method, allowing you to quickly treat cough.
  • A tablespoon of marshmallow root is infused in a glass cold water In one hour. The resulting infusion should be taken twice a day, 1 tablespoon. Children under one year old are given a teaspoon. The recipe is especially effective for chronic cough.
  • A glass of viburnum is brewed in a liter of water. The resulting compote is filtered, two tablespoons of honey are added to it. You can drink 2-3 glasses a day.
  • A tablespoon of coltsfoot is poured with boiling water and left for 40 minutes. The strained broth is taken every hour, one tablespoon. This method is used for continuous coughing in children.
  • Treatment of severe wet cough is productive with compositional decoctions. To prepare one of them, take 2 tablespoons of chamomile, oregano, coltsfoot, and infuse in 500 ml of boiling water. The resulting drink is filtered and taken several times a day, 100 ml.

Medicinal plants have powerful therapeutic effect, however, children should be treated with their help very carefully: they often cause allergies. The intake of infusions and decoctions by children under three years of age should be monitored and regulated by a pediatrician.

Honey recipes

Many folk remedies for coughs involve treatment with honey. This method is especially pleasant for children, because treating a disease with a sweet and tasty product is a pleasure! The delicacy quickly copes with the elimination of dry and wet cough, gradually relieves inflammation and reduces sore throat. Honey is not recommended for children under three years of age, as well as for those who are predisposed to allergies or diabetes.

Honey pastes are prepared very simply - the necessary components are mixed and, if necessary, infused. To cure a cough, you should give your child 1 teaspoon of the mixture three times a day - in the morning, during the day and before bedtime.

Here are some more simple recipes:

  • honey and olive oil in a 1:1 ratio;
  • 100 grams of honey and butter, a pinch of vanillin powder;
  • a tablespoon of carrot juice with a teaspoon of honey;
  • crushed lemon and a tablespoon of honey (leave the mixture for three hours).

Effective treatment of dry cough with lemon, glycerin and honey.

  1. The lemon is cooked for 10 minutes.
  2. The juice is squeezed into a glass, 2 tablespoons of glycerin and 100 grams of honey are added to it.
  3. All components are mixed.

This remedy should be given to the child three times a day, one teaspoon. At severe cough It is recommended to double the portion.

Inhalations

Inhalations are used to treat both wet and dry coughs in children. They are effective in treating the bronchi and trachea, making breathing easier, and relieving nasal congestion. Today, there are special medical devices that allow the procedure to be carried out with greater efficiency - nebulizers and steam inhalers.

However, in order to cure a cough, it is not necessary to purchase such a device. You can give your child inhalation using a simple saucepan into which a hot prepared solution is poured. You can simply treat a cough by inhalation using the following folk remedies:

  • decoction of oregano, coltsfoot, chamomile;
  • soda dissolved in water, sea salt;
  • essential oils (menthol, eucalyptus).

It is necessary to breathe the steam for 10-15 minutes to better impact You should put a towel over your head. It is not easy to explain to children under three years of age, and sometimes even at an older age, that such a measure is a treatment designed to alleviate the suffering of the baby. The procedure should be carried out in game form. For example, a parent can hide with the baby in a towel and breathe in beneficial fumes with him.

Very popular potato inhalations- an effective and simple folk remedy for cough for children.

  1. Boil clean potatoes in their skins.
  2. Drain the water.
  3. Inhale the steam from the pan with the vegetable for 15 minutes, covering your head with a towel.

After the procedure, the cough will subside, so you can do it before bed.

Compresses and rubbing

Warming methods are one of the most accessible and quick methods to cure cough. They are especially effective when integrated approach. Compresses allow the substance to act on deep tissues, promoting liquefaction and rapid removal of sputum, reducing bronchial spasms. Rubbing provides warming, which also reduces the time it takes to get rid of mucus. The procedures are contraindicated in elevated temperature bodies.

Badger fat is a well-known folk remedy for illness. Children under three years of age are rubbed with it, paying attention to the areas of the back, chest and feet. After the manipulations, the baby is wrapped warmly for a better effect of the product. A child over four years old can be given badger fat dissolved in warm milk to drink.

Compresses help quickly relieve cough. They relieve inflammation, increase blood circulation, stimulate protective properties body. Preparation for the procedure is simple and does not require much time. The compress is applied to children's chest or neck, and in some cases the child is completely wrapped.

Simple folk recipes compresses:

  • Warmed cottage cheese, wrapped in cloth, is applied to the baby's chest for 30-40 minutes.
  • A diaper or towel is dipped in warm vegetable oil and wrung out thoroughly. The child is wrapped in soaked cloth and wrapped in a warm blanket on top. After 40-50 minutes, you should change the sweaty little one into dry clothes and put him to bed.
  • A tablespoon of vinegar is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:3. Gauze is soaked in the resulting liquid and placed on the throat, with polyethylene placed on top. Then the neck is wrapped with a scarf. After 20 minutes, the compress is removed.

Mustard plasters - effective remedy traditional medicine for cough. A bag of mustard is placed on the child's back. The exposure time depends on age and individual sensitivity. So, for children under 7 years old, 2-3 minutes are enough, for those older - 10 minutes.

Severe coughs in children under one year of age can also be treated with mustard. To do this, one tablespoon of powder should be mixed with 500 ml of water. The diaper is placed in the resulting mixture and lightly wrung out. Baby wraps himself in wet cloth for 2-3 minutes, after which he wipes, wraps himself up and goes to bed.

How to quickly relieve an attack?

Sometimes children have an attack of dry cough. This phenomenon is often observed during sleep. You can quickly get rid of it using folk remedies. You can offer your child a warm drink, such as milk or chamomile infusion. They soften the mucous membrane, eliminate soreness and relieve cough.

If the child severe attack, you can give him a spoonful of honey and butter. This treatment is suitable for children who are not allergic to these products. If the above measures do not help, you should take the baby into the bathroom and turn on the hot water. High humidity and steam will ease the child's suffering and help get rid of a tearing and painful dry cough.

Treating a non-stop cough can be simple, but in an effective way. For cooking healing infusion You will need a tablespoon of sage (herb) and a glass of milk.

  1. The plant is poured with hot milk and infused for 30 minutes.
  2. The resulting liquid is filtered.
  3. Before going to bed, you should drink a glass of infusion.

After such a drink, children experience a calm and deep sleep, which is not disturbed by an annoying cough.

It should be remembered that treatment folk ways should help and bring relief, and not provoke complications. A small body is vulnerable and the likelihood of developing serious inflammation when coughing is very high. For this reason, it is recommended to treat children only under medical supervision.