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Treatment for Dry Cough

As annoying as it may seem, coughing is perfectly natural. In fact, it's a necessity. The act of coughing helps your body expel things from your lungs that shouldn't be there like dust or even mucus buildup. However, coughing is only beneficial when actual mucus is forced up and out of your body. A dry cough is not productive and can make it difficult to relax, sleep and sometimes even breathe. Luckily, there are ways to treat a bothersome dry cough so it no longer impairs your life.

  1. Drink Plenty of Water

    • The first way you should help your dry cough is to drink plenty of water or liquids in general. Doing so helps to make sure your body is well-lubricated and functioning properly. Enough water in your system can help make your throat less irritated and can thin mucus, if there is any.

    Use Cough Drops

    • Cough drops are a great way to keep your coughing under control. They aren't a cure and don't even contain ingredients that can suppress a cough, but they do soothe a chaffed and sore throat, often a byproduct of a dry cough. If you don't have any medicated cough drops on hand, regular hard candies can help as well.

    Hot Tea with Honey

    • One of the best ways to soothe a dry cough is to ingest honey in some manner. The typical preparation is to mix some honey into hot water, then drink. If this is too bland, you can mix the honey in hot tea for a warm drink that's tasty and soothing.

    Lemon Juice

    • Drinking lemon juice straight wouldn't exactly be pleasant, but lemon has healing properties and can be mixed with honey, tea or even just water to soothe an irritated throat and help ease the urge to cough.

    Avoid Irritants

    • If you're suffering from a dry, hacking cough, it would be best to stay away from anything that could irritate your throat or lungs further like smoke, perfume, pollution, cooking smells or dust. If you have to be around such irritants, you may wish to wear a face mask.

    Take a Suppressant

    • Cough syrups can help temporarily relieve your symptoms, but they can be counterproductive as well. For instance, if you have a mucus-filled cough, then you will need to take an expectorant, which helps you cough more and actually cough up mucus. However, if you were to take a suppressant, it would prevent you from coughing, which could lead to further chest congestion and even infection. A dry cough, however, can be treated effectively with a suppressant cough syrup, which as the name suggests, helps to suppress a cough. It is usually through a combination of these treatments that a dry cough is best relieved.

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