How to Select Herbs for Home Remedies to Treat Congestion

Congestion results from an accumulation of phlegm in the lungs. Expectorant herbs help to remove this phlegm from the lungs. There are two types of herbal expectorants. The first is a stimulating expectorant that deliberately irritates the respiratory system to induce coughing. The second is relaxing expectorants. These sooth bronchial spasms and break up mucus. These are particularly effective in dry, hard coughs. Read on to learn how to select expectorant herbs to use for home remedies to treat congestion.

Instructions

• 1

  Get rid of phlegm with eucalyptus remedies. Eucalyptus is an effective expectorant that is distilled from the twigs and leaves of the eucalyptus tree. The primary component of eucalyptus oil is the volatile substance cineol, which has an irritant action on tissues and induces coughing.

• 2

  Use licorice as an expectorant. It loosens mucus and lubricates the respiratory tract. It is an ingredient in almost all cough medicines.

• 3

  Prepare home remedies from coltsfoot. Coltsfoot is a member of the Sunflower family. It contains mucilage, which is a demulcent, meaning that it coats irritated mucus membranes. It works as a cough suppressant and as an expectorant.

• 4

  Take thyme as a relaxing expectorant. Thyme has a volatile ingredient, thymol, which has a relaxing expectorant effect. It is beneficial in the treatment of whooping cough, bronchial coughs, and laryngitis.

• 5

  Use marshmallow to prepare expectorant remedies. Marshmallow plant has a high concentration of mucilage which coats and soothes the membranes in the respiratory tract. It is used to treat dry coughs.