Cough refers to a natural protective reflex action of the body to get rid of dust, mucus, germs (viruses, bacteria) and other irritants that have entered the airway. There are various causes of it, ranging from mild to serious ones.
Homeopathy is a 200-year-old healing science known to treat health issues naturally. Therefore, homeopathic medicines for cough work in a similar manner. Homeopathy uses organic ingredients for treating cough and they are, thus, safe to use. As cough can arise due to various causes, homeopathic medicines aim to treat the underlying cause behind the cough to bring about recovery. Mainstream medicines mainly comprise cough suppressants and antibiotics for treating cough. They provide temporary relief and have side effects as well. However, homeopathic medicines do not cause any adverse effects as they cure the cough rather than simply provide temporary relief.
Homeopathy for All Types of Cough
Homeopathy offers great results in acute as well as chronic cases of cough. Any type of cough, including dry cough, a loose rattling cough, spasmodic cough (violent cough attack ending on vomiting), paroxysmal cough (intermittent, uncontrollable violent cough attacks with breathing difficulty and exhaustion), and nocturnal cough (meaning cough at night), all are wonderfully treated with homeopathy. Also, cough arising from various diseases like asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, and pneumonia is treated remarkably well with homeopathy. Along with coughing, the accompanying symptoms like wheezing, expectoration, difficulty in breathing, and shortness of breath are also cured easily by using homeopathic medicines. The results, however, vary depending on the intensity of these symptoms.
Safe and Gentle Treatment
Homeopathy is suitable to manage cough among people of all age groups. The homeopathic medicines reach the core and bring excellent results. The best part of using these medicines is that they do not contain any toxins or chemicals.
Top 11 Homeopathic Medicines for Cough
There is a long list of therapeutics for the treatment of cough. Among them, the top medicines include Bryonia Alba, Antimonium Tartaricum, Spongia Tosta, Drosera Rotundifolia, Hepar Sulphur, Arsenic Album, Ipecacuanha, Corallium Rubrum, Rumex Crispus, Stannum Metallicum and Cina Maritima.
1. Bryonia Alba—For Dry Cough
Bryonia Alba is a very effective medicine to deal with cases of dry cough. The cough aggravates when eating or drinking. The cough is dry and hard; in most cases, it is accompanied by chest pain. Coughing is so heavy that a person has to put their hands on their chest to support it. Another prominent symptom is stabbing pain in the chest, which gets worse on inhaling. The chest pain may get better by lying on the side that presents pain. Coughing may also be accompanied by a headache. In some cases, food gets vomited while coughing.
When to use Bryonia Alba?
Its use is highly suggested to manage dry cough, mostly accompanied by pain in the chest and head while coughing.
How to use Bryonia Alba?
It may be used in 30 C potency twice or thrice a day.
2. Antimonium Tartaricum— For Loose and Rattling Cough
Antimonium Tartaricum works very well in cases of a loose, rattling cough. The lungs feel full of mucus. The cough remains constant 24/7. The patient faces excessive difficulty in expelling the phlegm. Besides, breathing becomes difficult, mostly at night, and the person awakens from sleep. In addition to the above symptoms, a burning sensation in the chest may be present. Chest pain on coughing also arises in some cases. A cough that worsens after each meal is yet another characteristic symptom that points towards the use of Antimonium Tart.
When to use Antimonium Tartaricum?
It is the best medicine for managing a loose, rattling cough with difficulty in expectorating the phlegm.
How to use Antimonium Tartaricum?
Though it can be used in both low and high potencies. Initially, 30C potency is the most preferred dose. Antimonium Tart 30C can be taken two to three times a day as per the intensity of the symptom.
3. Spongia Tosta– For Cough with Extreme Dryness of Air Passages
Spongia Tosta is a medicine that is highly useful when there is a cough with extreme dryness of all the air passages. The cough is dry, barking, and hacking. Chills may accompany coughing. Warm drinks may offer a little relief. Along with this, shortness of breath and laboured respiration may also be present.
When to use Spongia Tosta?
This medicine is highly recommended for managing dry coughing with absolute dryness of all the air passages. Coughing gets better with warm drinks.
How to use Spongia Tosta?
It is best to take it in 30C power once or twice daily.
4. Drosera Rotundifolia—For Cough That Aggravates On Lying Down
Drosera Rotundifolia is a very effective homeopathic remedy for coughing that sets off while lying down. Cough is usually a dry, irritating type. Episodes of coughing are felt one after the other. A marked fatigue accompanies coughing episodes. Other accompanying symptoms include tickling in the larynx, a scraping sensation (like in a sore throat), and fetid breath, along with coughing. Bouts of vomiting with coughing may also arise. The coughing usually worsens when talking or laughing.
When to use Drosera Rotundifolia?
This medicine is usually prescribed to manage a cough that aggravates when lying down as soon as the head touches the pillow. Cough is dry and irritative in nature.
How to use Drosera Rotundifolia?
It can be taken in 30C potency three or four times a day initially. Gradually, the dose may be decreased once relief sets in.
5. Hepar Sulphuris — For loose cough with thick, yellow expectoration
Hepar Sulphuris is a very beneficial medicine for managing a loose cough with thick, yellow expectoration. The sputa is sticky. A characteristic feature of using this medicine is that the cough aggravates due to exposure to cold air. On the other hand, warmth relieves the symptoms.
When to use Hepar Sulphuris?
Hepar Sulphuris is used to manage a loose cough with thick, yellow expectoration and also for a cough that gets worse from cold air exposure.
How to use Hepar Sulphuris?
It is advised to use Hepar Sulph 30C twice to thrice daily.
6. Arsenic Album—For Asthmatic Cough
Arsenic Album is an excellent choice of medicine for an asthmatic cough. Arsenic Album should be used for a cough accompanied by shortness of breath and wheezing/whistling in the chest. There is a worsening of the symptoms around midnight. Tightness in the chest may also be felt. There may be sticky expectoration of a yellowish/greenish colour. Another accompanying feature is suffocative attacks during sleep. Anxiety and restlessness may be felt along with the above symptoms.
When to use Arsenic Album?
Its use is recommended to manage asthmatic cough with breathing difficulty and wheezing that gets worse around midnight, along with anxiety and restlessness.
How to use Arsenic Album?
This medicine can be used in 30C potency two to three times a day as per the intensity of the symptom.
7. Ipecacuanha—For Loose Cough with Vomiting
Ipecacuanha is a very suitable medicine for a loose cough accompanied by vomiting. Nausea is also present. There is also a complaint of sticky expectoration (that refuses to come out) with cough. A constricted feeling in the chest and shortness of breath may be felt. Suffocative spells may accompany the cough.
When to use Ipecacuanha?
It works great when a loose cough is accompanied by nausea and vomiting.
How to use Ipecacuanha?
It is usually recommended in a 30C potency that can be taken one to two times daily.
8. Corallium Rubrum—For Cough from PND (post-nasal dripping
Corallium Rubrum is for a cough caused by PND (postnasal drip). The cough comes in short, quick spurts that follow one another. Along with the cough, one has to hawk excessively. Extreme exhaustion is felt along with coughing. A vital symptom that accompanies the above symptoms is extremely sensitive air passages to air (inhaled air feels cold).
When to use Corallium Rubrum?
This medicine proves beneficial for managing cough that appears in quick, short, repetitive attacks arising from post nasal drip.
How to use Corallium Rubrum?
It works well in both low and high potencies. Initially, it is best to take it in 30C potency two to three times a day.
9. Stannum Metallicum– For Paroxysmal Cough with Profound Exhaustion
Stannum Metallicum is administered if there is a deep, exhausting cough and the patient feels extremely weak and is unable to talk. The cough is violent, dry or loose, and comes in consecutive paroxysms of three coughs, often ending in retching. It may suddenly be ejected by laughter, hoarse talking, or singing. It gets worse in the evening until midnight and while lying on the right side. There is marked shortness of breath from the slightest exertion, and the patient may need to loosen clothes while coughing. Expectoration is copious, greenish, sweetish, and most profuse in the morning. The chest feels raw, hollow, sore, and painful, with stitching pains that get worse on breathing.
When to use Stannum Metallicum?
It works well when the cough comes in consecutive three paroxysms and leaves the patient extremely weak and exhausted.
How to use Stannum Metallicum?
It can be administered with 30C potency once a day.
10. Rumex Crispus– For Dry and Tickling Cough, worse from Cold Air
Rumex Crispus is indicated in a dry, teasing, persistent cough caused by a tickling in the throat-pit. The cough is aggravated by talking, pressure, and especially by inspiring cool air, and it gets worse at night, often preventing one from sleeping. There is marked dryness of the nose with copious mucus discharge from the nose and trachea. Expectoration may be thin, watery, and frothy at first, while later it becomes stringy and tough. The person may feel a sensation of a lump in the throat.
When to use Rumex Crispus?
It works wonders when a dry cough starts from the tickling in the throat-pit and it gets worse by inspiring cool air, talking, and at night.
How to use Rumex Crispus?
It can be initiated with a lower potency 30C once a day.
11. Cina Maritima—For Spasmodic and Violent Cough
Cina Maritima is a significant medicine for a spasmodic cough. Cina is helpful when there is a violent cough that ends in vomiting. The cough is so intense that it brings tears and sternal pain; it feels as if something has been torn off (bronchitis). The cough usually appears in paroxysms with accompanying shortness of breath. After coughing, the patient gasps for air and turns pale.
When to use Cina Maritima?
It is an excellent medicine for spasmodic cough, in which a violent cough occurs that ends in vomiting.
How to use Cina Maritima?
One may take Cina Maritima 30C once or twice a day.
What Causes Cough
A cough can happen due to various reasons
1. The first cause can be an infection of the upper respiratory tract, usually a viral infection like a cold or the flu.
2. Further causes include bronchitis, asthma, emphysema and pneumonia. Bronchitis is a condition occurring due to inflamed bronchial tubes. Asthma is a respiratory disease in which narrowing and swelling of airways occur with excessive mucus production, resulting in difficult breathing, chest tightness, wheezing, and coughing. Emphysema is a condition in which the air sacs in the lungs are damaged. Pneumonia refers to a condition in which there is inflammation in the air sacs of the lungs caused by an infection.
3. Smoking may also lead to coughing.
4. Other causes may be allergies or PND (post-nasal drip), in which mucus drips from the back of the nose into the throat.
5. The use of certain medicines, like angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors, used to treat high BP and heart disease, may also result in coughing.
6. Acid reflux that irritates the throat can cause coughing, especially chronic dry coughing, that gets worse at night or after meals.
7. Tuberculosis: Chronic Coughing lasting more than 2-3 weeks, especially with weight loss, blood in sputum and evening rise of temperature should be evaluated to rule out Tuberculosis.
8. Rarely, lung cancer could be the cause.
Types of Cough
These are some common types of cough
1. Dry Cough – A cough without mucus production, often irritating and persistent.
2. Wet (Productive) Cough – A cough that produces mucus or phlegm from the chest.
3. Acute Cough – A short-term cough lasting less than 3 weeks, usually due to infection.
4. Subacute Cough – A cough lasting 3 to 8 weeks, often following a respiratory infection.
5. Chronic Cough – A cough lasting more than 8 weeks, commonly linked to asthma, allergies, smoking, or GERD.
6. Allergic Cough – Triggered by allergens like dust, pollen, or animal dander.
7. Smoker’s Cough – A persistent early morning cough seen among people who smoke.
8. Whooping Cough – A severe coughing fit followed by a “whooping” sound while breathing in.
9. Nocturnal Cough – A cough that worsens at night.
10. Paroxysmal Cough – Sudden, intense, uncontrollable coughing spells.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is a cough a disease or a symptom?
A cough is usually a symptom, not a disease. It is a protective reflex that helps clear mucus, irritants, or infections from the airways.
2. Does every cough need antibiotics?
No. Most coughs are caused by viral infections, and antibiotics are not effective against viruses.
3. Why does the cough worsen at night?
Cough may worsen at night due to post-nasal drip, asthma, or acid reflux.
4. Is cough contagious?
Cough itself is not contagious, but infections causing cough (like cold or flu) can spread from person to person.
5. What is a habit (psychogenic) cough?
It is a persistent dry cough without an underlying physical cause, often seen among children and disappears during sleep.
6. Can a cough lead to complications?
Severe or prolonged coughing may cause chest pain, vomiting, rib pain, urinary leakage, or disturbed sleep.
7. When are investigations required for a cough?
Tests are advised if the cough lasts more than 3 weeks, is recurrent, severe, or associated with red flag symptoms.
8. Is coughing up blood serious?
Yes, blood in sputum is a red flag and needs urgent medical evaluation.
9. Is coughing always a sign of infection?
No. Cough can also be caused by allergies, asthma, acid reflux, smoking, or environmental irritants.
10. When is a cough dangerous?
Coughing with blood, weight loss, breathlessness, high fever, or lasting more than 3 weeks requires medical attention.
11. What dietary measures should be followed during a cough?
One should avoid cold beverages, refrigerated, fried and spicy foods. Sipping warm water throughout the day can be helpful.