Most coughs and colds are caused by viruses, not bacteria. Antibiotics will not relieve your symptoms or speed up your recovery, but over-the-counter decongestants, antihistamines and pain relievers like acetaminophen may help.
Drinking warm liquids like chicken soup, tea or apple juice can soothe your throat and thin the mucus so it drains better. Avoiding environmental irritants and getting plenty of sleep can also help.
1. Drink Plenty of Water
Staying hydrated can help thin mucus so that it’s easier to cough up. Water is best, but you can also drink other fluids like juice or tea. Avoid caffeinated drinks and alcohol, however, which can dry your throat out.
Sipping warm liquids such as chicken soup can soothe a sore throat and ease congestion. You can also try hot water mixed with honey. Honey may relieve a cough in adults and children older than 1.
You can also add moisture to the air in your home with a cool-mist vaporizer or humidifier. Just make sure to change the water and clean the unit according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Over-the-counter (OTC) decongestants, antihistamines and pain relievers may offer some symptom relief, but they won’t prevent or shorten a cold or flu.
2. Gargle with Salt Water
With the leaves changing colors, pumpkin spice-flavored everything lining the shelves, and Halloween around the corner, autumn is the unofficial start of cold and flu season. The first symptom of either is typically a sore throat. You may remember your mom telling you to gargle salt water as a child, but it turns out she was right! The difference between cold vs flu is that you’re more likely to have a fever and chills with the flu.
Salt water gargling can help alleviate throat pain by drawing out the viruses or bacteria that cause them. It also thins out mucus buildup in the throat and nasal cavity and helps clear it out.
Mix a quarter to a half teaspoon of table or sea salt in a cup of warm water. Then, tilt your head back and start swishing the salt water around your mouth and teeth. After about 30 seconds, spit it out.
3. Take a Hot Bath or Shower
A cough is the body’s healthy response to an irritant in the throat or airways. When that irritant triggers the nerves, the brain signals muscles to contract and push the air out of the lungs, explains the Mayo Clinic.
Moist air helps thin mucus and soothes dry nostrils. Consider using a humidifier in the home or leaving a shallow bowl of water near a heat source to help humidify the air.
A hot bath or shower moistens the nasal passages, soothes a sore throat and relaxes a tired body. Just remember that a long soak can be dehydrating, so drink plenty of water before and after the bath. You can also add a few drops of eucalyptus oil to the bath. This oil is known to relieve congestion and soothe the throat.
4. Suck on Cough Drops
Whether it’s caused by airborne allergens, a tickle, or a cold, coughing is never fun. Fortunately, sucking on cough drops can help relieve the itchy feeling in the throat. Most cough drops contain ingredients like menthol and eucalyptus that feel cool and refreshing in the throat. They can also contain glycerin, which coats the throat and helps quell coughing.
Other cough drops are fortified with immune-boosting ingredients that may help support a healthy body, such as zinc and vitamin D. However, most cough drops are high in sugar, which can contribute to tooth decay if taken frequently. If you want to give your child a cough drop that is low in sugar, try Lolleez lollipop-shaped drops (for kids ages 3 and up). The sweet-tasting drops don’t contain any medicine or painkiller and contain less than a teaspoon of sugar.
5. Get Plenty of Sleep
A good night’s sleep will help your immune system battle viruses and bacteria. It also helps you to fight off coughs and colds. In fact, researchers found that people who sleep less than six hours a night are three times more likely to catch a cold than those who get plenty of shut-eye.
Getting plenty of rest can relieve dry coughs and soothe throat irritation, says Austin. You can also try placing a cool-mist vaporizer or humidifier next to your bed. And a warm cup of herbal tea or chamomile can soothe your symptoms and induce a sleepy state. Add a squeeze of lemon and some honey to make it more soothing.
If your nighttime cough is due to acid reflux disease (GERD), avoiding heavy, spicy, fatty and late-night meals can improve your symptoms. Also, reduce allergens in your home to combat allergies that may be triggering your symptom.
6. Stay Away From Smoking
Although a cough is often uncomfortable, it helps remove mucus and other irritants from the lungs and throat. This is why it is important to avoid smoking, as well as secondhand smoke, when you have a cough or cold.
If you find yourself coughing a lot at night, place a cool-mist vaporizer or humidifier next to your bed. The moist air will help thin the mucus, making it easier to cough up. A teaspoon or two of honey at bedtime may also help reduce coughing and sneezing, but do not give honey to infants; it can cause a serious sickness called infant botulism.
Remember, though, that over-the-counter cough and cold medicines can be addictive, so use them sparingly. And always talk to your doctor before taking any medications, especially if you have asthma or chronic bronchitis.
7. Take a Cough Medicine
Many cold and cough medicines contain acetaminophen, which can help reduce fever, aches and pain. However, children and adults who take more than the recommended dose on the product label may overdose. Read the Drug Facts label carefully, and always follow the instructions.
Some over-the-counter cough medicines have antihistamines (like brompheniramine or diphenhydramine) and/or decongestants to reduce allergy-type symptoms that cause postnasal drip and coughing. Some products also contain expectorants like guaifenesin to thin mucus, making it easier to cough up.
Keep in mind that most over-the-counter cough and cold medicines have multiple ingredients to treat more than one symptom. Select products that only have the medicines you need. For example, if only your child has a cough, don’t use medicine that also contains a decongestant or an antihistamine.