What triggers coughing and how to prevent coughing? Cough; It is a common symptom of many diseases, especially upper respiratory diseases. For an effective treatment, it is very important to correctly evaluate the symptoms associated with cough. Cough is experienced by almost everyone in daily life, and coughing can be done deliberately or as part of a reflex. The cough usually resolves by itself within three weeks. In general, it may not cause you to consult your doctor. However, cough can be a symptom of another disease. Therefore, cough symptoms should be analyzed very well before starting cough treatment. So, which diseases can cause cough? In this article, we will talk about the types of cough and their reasons by giving some advice to get rid of cough.
What is Cough?
Cough is not a disease, but a defense mechanism for cleaning the throat and airways. Cough can be classified in two different ways dry or wet cough and chronic-acute. A dry cough can cause a sore throat. A wet cough, on the other hand, brings up mucus (sputum), and it is called a productive cough. Coughs lasting three weeks or more are considered chronic cough. Acute cough infections are caused by sinusitis, pharyngitis, catarrh, etc., and it can sometimes last for years.
Causes of Cough
Cough is usually caused by viruses and cures itself without treatment. Acute or chronic cough occurs for different reasons.
Causes of acute cough: Acute cough lasting less than three weeks is usually caused by upper or lower respiratory infections. Some of the conditions that may cause cough by affecting the upper and lower respiratory are mentioned below;
- Flu or Cold
- Pharyngitis
- Spring allergies
- Bronchitis
- Pneumonia
- Whooping cough
- Acute sinusitis
Causes of chronic cough: Some of the conditions that can cause chronic cough include;
- Smoking
- Asthma
- Postnasal drip
- Dryness of the mucous membrane of the upper respiratory tract
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- COPD (Chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases)
- Neuromuscular diseases such as Parkinson disease
- Tuberculosis
- Fungal infections in the lugs
- Pulmonary embolism
- Lung Cancer
- Respiratory Allergies
- Some drugs like ACE inhibitors
- Cystic fibrosis
Treatment for a Cough
As a precaution against cough, the first thing to do: Ventilate and humidify the patient’s room should be. The patient should consume plenty of fluids, especially herbal teas. It is useful to know the cause of the cough.
- Peel an apple, and put a few its seeds, linden, a few cloves, a cinnamon bark, a slice of lemon. Boil all of them, and drink when it is hot. If you want to, you can sweeten with honey.
- If the linden and quince leaves are boiled and drunk, the cough will pass.
- Mix thyme and honey, boil them in the water. It is also used for babies who suffer from cough, but be careful that the mixture should not be hot if a kid will drink it.
Getting rid of a cough is possible by detecting and treating cough-causing diseases. If respiratory infections are considered to be the most important cause of cough, protection from these diseases will be a precaution for coughing. For this;
- A regular and balanced diet, take enough vitamin C, especially in winter.
- Avoiding any dusty and dirty environment.
- Regular sports or exercising.
- Pay attention to sleep periods and rest the body in order not to feel exhausted.
- Drink plenty of fluids
- Stay away from smoking which is the most common cause of cough.
Cough in children
Cough in children is often a sign that the body is trying to get rid of an irritating factor in the respiratory tract, such as sputum and foreign bodies. Common causes of cough in children include infection, colds, flu, and croup. Chronic cough in children is most commonly caused by asthma.
