Would You Please Stop That Coughing!

Coughing is your body’s way of breaking up mucus, clearing airways and getting rid of irritants. As annoying as coughs are, it’s actually best to let your body take care of itself and do what it needs to do, cough. But when your throat is sore, you’re trying to sleep, sit in meetings or handle business calls, persistent coughing is irritating and you want relief.

Here's a collection of easy remedies and home treatments for getting rid of coughs, most are simple to manage with many ingredients found in your pantry.

Homemade Honey & Lemon Cough Syrup

1/2 cup honey
1 lemon (juiced)
1 TBS glycerin

1. Heat the lemon juice in a saucepan without bringing to a boil, add to honey and glycerin, mix thoroughly.
   
2. Pour into sterilized glass jars and seal. Refrigerate.
   
3. Instructions for use: Take 1 to 2 tablespoons as needed to relieve cough.

Thyme or Basil Tea Remedy

• Brew 1 tablespoon dried thyme in 1 cup boiling water. Strain then drink (for sore throats, gargle with this tea).
  
• You can also make a basil tea: For relief of cough, make a tea of dried basil (1 teaspoon) per 1 cup boiling water. Steep then strain, add a spoonful of honey then drink

Horehound Cough Medicine

1 oz. dried horehound leaves
1 pint boiling water

1. Pour hot water over leaves and steep for 10 minutes. Strain.
   
2. Mix 1 1/2 cups of the infused water with 3 cups of honey. Pour into sterilized jars, seal.
   
3. Instructions for use: Take 1 tsp every 4 hours (during waking hours) until cough goes away. Do not take more than 4 tsp a day.

Simmered Onions & Honey

1. Simmer roughly chopped onions in water until soft.
   
2. Mix onions with honey and eat every four hours.

Another remedy is to strain out the onion after boiling for about 15 minutes, then bottle the juice. Drink the onion juice as needed to relieve a cough.

Ginger

• Mix 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger with 1 teaspoon of honey for cough relief.
  
• Another remedy is to dip a piece of fresh ginger into coarse salt (to coat the ginger) then eat it.

Aloe Vera Remedy

Mix equal parts of aloe vera juice/gel with honey to treat coughs.

Apple Cider Vinegar & Honey

This one’s easy, just mix 1/2 tsp of apple cider vinegar with 1/2 tsp of honey and drink.

Rose Hip Tea

Soothe a tickly cough by adding 1 spoonful of honey to rose hip tea. Make tea with 2 tsp dried rose hips per 1 cup of boiling water, steep for 10 to 15 minutes.

For a chronic cough that just won’t go away after a few days, make sure to see your doctor. You could have more serious issues going on that need to be tended to. Remember: Honey shouldn’t be given to children under one year old (risk of infant botulism).