What can be done against dry coughs?

The most important points in brief

• Uncomfortable at all times of the day and night and sometimes difficult to get rid of - we've all had a dry cough.
• Even without a cough or other cold symptoms, the annoying dry cough sets in.
• The mucous membranes are often quite dry. Often the mucus is just too tight in the throat.
• However, there are a few home remedies that you can use to get rid of the nuisance and get rid of the cough.

I'm sure you know that. You have a cold and an urge to cough, which you want to suppress. But at some point it bursts out of you - and the attraction never stops. Incidentally, this does not only occur when you have a cold. Even if the mucous membranes are too dry, dry cough can become a really unpleasant companion that accompanies us for many hours if you don't do anything about it and hope that the snorting will stop by itself at some point. Fortunately, there are some good home remedies when conventional medicine reaches its limits.

Warmth and moisture or liquids are always good against dry coughs

What triggers a dry cough is often a too dry pharynx and oral mucosa and stuck secretion. The very mundane solution to this is: drink. Something warm, because the combination of warmth and liquid (or moisture, but more on that later) is extremely beneficial. Tea made from verbena, sage, anise or ribwort is ideal.

But milk can also help - especially if you briefly boil it with a peeled piece of ginger and a little honey and then let it steep for a few minutes. Ginger has an antibacterial or antiviral effect, and the honey not only gives the final touch in terms of taste, it also inhibits inflammation and strengthens the immune system. The milk itself relieves the pain in the throat caused by the dry, tickly cough.

Inhalations, especially those with sage, are well suited for moist mucous membranes with irritable coughs. The essential oils of this plant cover the mucous membranes and bronchi like a protection, where the hot water vapor transports them.

Nocturnal irritable cough: fresh and moist air helps

A persistent dry cough at night is particularly annoying and can drive us to despair. Often this not only affects your own sleep, but also that of your partner. However, you can prevent this cough well - for example, by swallowing a spoonful of fennel honey before going to bed. That kills the urge to cough. Put the honey on the bedside table for the night in order to be prepared in the event of an emergency should the dry cough still occur.

It is helpful to ventilate the bedroom well during the day and to set up a humidifier, to put the clothes horse with freshly washed laundry or - in winter - a water bowl on the heater. You should also have drunk enough during the day, namely water or tea.

Also helpful against dry coughs: the essential oils of onions

Not only the oils, but also the flavonoids contained in the onion help to suppress the dry cough. It also kills germs. A stock made from onions, which you slowly bring to the boil with a spoonful of rock sugar, is ideal. Let the result cool down and then take about three teaspoons of the resulting brew per day.

In addition to the options outlined, you can also try throat lozenges, throat spray and cough syrup.