Nocturnal chesty cough

Chesty cough can disturb the night’s rest to a great extent. It takes much longer to fall asleep because the dry itching in the throat repeatedly leads to coughing attacks. Or you wake up at night because you get a coughing attack.

In general, there are simple tricks that can help with a chesty cough and are described under “Chesty cough home remedies”. Before going to bed, a glass of hot milk with honey soothes the irritated mucous membrane of the respiratory tract and makes it easier to fall asleep. Children under one year of age should not yet eat honey, the milk can then be drunk without honey.

Those who do not like milk should take a cup of fresh mallow or marshmallow tea before going to bed. Other tricks can also improve the irritable cough during the night to such an extent that a relatively restful sleep is possible. Warm and dry room air is a common cause of dry cough and should therefore be avoided.

Before going to bed, you should air the room extensively, use a humidifier or simply a damp towel on the heater and a room temperature of around 18° Celsius. It is also recommended to sleep with a raised upper body, as a raised upper body makes breathing much easier and thus prevents coughing attacks. If the household remedies fail, a cough-relieving medication can be purchased over the counter from the pharmacy. A nocturnal irritable cough can also be the symptom of another illness and should be clarified by a doctor if it lasts for a long time.

Chesty cough after a cold

Especially after a cold caused by viruses, it is quite common that the dry cough without sputum remains for several weeks. In the case of an acute infection of the upper respiratory tract, which includes the nose, mouth and throat, the mucous membrane of the affected areas is irritated, and is therefore inflamed and reddened. The consequence is a dry irritated cough.

An infection of the lower respiratory tract often results in a phlegmy cough, as the pathogens have to be transported from the bottom to the top of the airways in order to find their way out of the body. When the cold or bronchitis is over, a persistent dry irritable cough is still present in many cases, which is due to the mucous membranes still being irritated. Remedial action can be taken by cough drops that keep the mucous membrane moist or inhalations with hot steam or Emser salts.If the dry irritable cough after a cold persists for several weeks without improvement, a doctor should be consulted to find out whether there is a cause other than the cold behind the irritable cough.