Homeopathic treatment is highly effective in cases of cough. Homeopathy uses medicines of natural origin for treating cough and they are, therefore, without any side effects and safe to use for persons of all age group. These medicines work to treat the cause of the cough so as to bring about a complete recovery in a natural way.
Homeopathic medicines give an excellent result in acute as well as chronic cases of a cough. There is a vast scope for treating various types of a cough with homeopathic remedies. Cough including dry cough, loose rattling cough, spasmodic cough, paroxysmal cough, nocturnal cough, all are wonderfully treatable with homeopathic medicines. Also, cough arising from various diseases like asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, and pneumonia is treated remarkably well with homeopathic medicines.
Along with cough the attending symptoms like wheezing, expectoration, difficulty in breathing and shortness of breath also go away with the use of homeopathic medicines.
Cough and its Attending Symptoms
A cough means a sudden forceful expelling of air from the lungs with a harsh, loud noise. It is a reflex that aids in clearing the lungs and breathing passages of foreign substances, irritants, smoke, dust, microbes, mucus and fluid. Some of the symptoms that may attend a cough include mucus expectoration, bloody sputa, chest pain, wheezing/whistling in chest and shortness of breath. A cough can be dry or productive. In productive cough expectoration of phlegm is present while in a dry cough there is no expectoration.
Reasons behind Cough
There are a large number of reasons behind cough. The major ones include cold, influenza, sinusitis, asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, bronchiectasis, pneumonia, GERD, tuberculosis, laryngitis, ACE inhibitors, interstitial lung disease, lung cancer, cigarette smoking, dust inhalation, post-nasal dripping and cystic fibrosis.
Homeopathic Medicines for Cough
There is a large list of homeopathic therapeutics for treatment of cough. Among them, the top ranked homeopathic medicines include – Drosera Rotundifolia, Antimonium Tart, andConium Maculatum. The characteristic features of these remedies are as below:
Drosera Rotundfolia – Excellent homeopathic medicine for a dry cough.
Drosera Rotundifolia is a very effective homeopathic medicine for a dry cough. For using Drosera, a dry, irritative (irritant) cough is the chief indicator. The cough comes in attacks that follow each other rapidly. A marked fatigue attends the coughing episodes. Other accompanying symptoms include tickling in the larynx, scraping sensation in the throat and fetid breath with the cough. Vomiting with cough may also arise. The cough usually worsens after talking or laughing.
Cough that appears during measles or following it is also treated well with this remedy. Drosera is also a well indicated homeopathic remedy for a cough that begins on lying down.
Antimonium Tart – Highly Suitable homeopathic medicine for a rattling cough.
Antimonium Tart works very well in cases of rattling cough. The patient has a loose, rattling cough and the lungs feel full of mucus. The cough remains constant throughout the day and night. The patient faces excessive difficulty in raising the phlegm. Along with this, difficulty in breathing (most marked at night time) is present. Difficulty in breathing makes a person sit up from a prone position (in which it is worse). In addition to the above symptoms, a burning sensation in the chest may be present. Chest pain on coughing also arises in some of the cases. A cough that worsens after each meal is yet another characteristic feature pointing towards the use of Antimonium Tart
Conium Maculatum –homeopathic medicine for a nocturnal cough.
Conium Maculatum is useful homeopathic medicine for a nocturnal cough. The patient has a cough at night on lying down. They are restless at night and tend to sit up many times due to coughing spells. A tickling sensation in the throat pit may be prominently present. A few individuals may complain of an unusually dry spot in the larynx. In some cases, a headache on coughing may arise.
Ipecac—homeopathic medicine for cough with difficult expectoration
Ipecac is a suitable homeopathic medicine for a cough with difficult expectoration. The patient has a loose rattling cough with marked difficulty in expectoration. A constricted feeling in the chest and shortness of breath may arise. Suffocative spells may accompany the cough. Nausea and vomiting with cough are also present in a majority of the cases.
Spongia Tosta—homeopathic medicine for a cough with dry air passages
Spongia Tosta is a homeopathic medicine that is highly useful when there is a cough with extreme dryness of all the air passages. The cough is an exclusively dry, barking, hacking type. Chills may attend the cough. Warm drinks may offer a little relief. Along with this, shortness of breath and laboured respiration may also be present.
Corallium Rubrum—homeopathic medicines for a cough from PND (post nasal dripping)
Corallium Rubrum is a good homeopathic medicine for cough from PND (post nasal dripping). The cough appears in quick, short attacks that follow each other in quick succession. Along with the cough, excessive hawking is also present. Extreme exhaustion is felt along with the cough. A vital symptom that attends the above symptoms is the sensitivity of air passages to air (inhaled air feels cold).
Millifolium—homeopathic medicine for cough with bloody sputa (hemoptysis)
Millifolium is a homeopathic medicine of immense help in a cough with bloody sputa or in any lung disease with accompanying cough. In addition, shortness of breath, difficulty in breathing and oppression of chest appear. Hemoptysis after injury or following violent exertion also indicates the use of Millifolium.
Natrum Mur—homeopathic medicine for a cough with white expectoration.
For a cough with white sputa expectoration, Natrum Mur is a beneficial homeopathic medicine. The sputa may be salty to taste. Other attending symptoms are a cough with the flowing of tears from the eyes, a headache of bursting nature, and shortness of breath. A sore, bruised feeling in the chest also appears. Another symptom that may arise is involuntary urination during coughing.
Kali Sulph and Pulsatilla Nigricans —homeopathic medicines for cough with yellow & green expectoration respectively.
Kali Sulph is a valuable homeopathic medicine for cough with expectoration of yellow coloured sputa. Other symptoms pointing to the use of Kali Sulph are the rattling of mucus in the chest, difficult expectoration, and wheezing in the chest.
Pulsatilla Nigricans is an important homeopathic medicine for cough where greenish expectoration is present. The patient’s cough may get aggravated in a warm room and find relief in open air. Pulsatilla Nigricans is also suited for a cough after measles.
Phosphorus and Hepar Sulph—homeopathic remedies for a cough in bronchitis
Phosphorus and Hepar Sulph are beneficial homeopathic medicines for cough in bronchitis. The characteristic indicators for using Phosphorus are cough with sputum expectoration of a purulent nature, frothy or blood-stained sputum. The phlegm may be salty or sweet to taste. Strong odours may trigger a cough.
Along with cough, chest tightness, oppression of chest, and sharp stitching pain in the chest may be present. Heat/ burning sensation in the chest may also appear in a few individuals needing Phosphorus.
Hepar Sulph is significant medicine for bronchitis in older adults. The symptoms indicating use of Hepar Sulph are a loose rattling cough with thick, tenacious, yellow sputa. The cough may worsen from exposure to cold air, while warmth relieves it.
Arsenic Album—homeopathic medicine for an asthmatic cough.
Arsenic Album is an excellent choice of homeopathic medicine for an asthmatic cough. The symptoms indicating the use of Arsenic Album are a cough with shortness of breath, and wheezing/whistling in the chest. Tightness in the chest may also arise. Tenacious expectoration of yellow/ green colour may be there. Other attending feature is suffocative attacks during sleep. Anxiety and restlessness may occur in persons along with above symptoms.
Antimonium Arsenicosum – Suitable homeopathic medicine for a cough in emphysema
Antimonium Arsenicosum is a homeopathic medicine for treating cough in persons having emphysema. Along with a cough, extreme dyspnea (difficulty in breathing) attends. In most cases lying down worsens the cough and dyspnea. Excessive mucus expectoration is also there with an emphysematous cough. In addition, a general weakness and loss of appetite may be present.
Bryonia Alba –homeopathic medicine for a cough in pneumonia patients
Bryonia Alba is a beneficial homeopathic medicine for a cough in pneumonia patients. The guiding symptoms for using Bryonia Alba include a dry, hard cough and brick coloured/blood streaked sputa. Chest pain on coughing, which makes a person hold the chest is the chief attending feature. Stitching pain in the chest which is worse on inhaling is another prominent symptom for using Bryonia Alba. The chest pain may benefit from lying on the painful side.
Sambucus Nigra –homeopathic medicine for cough in children.
Sambucus Nigra is a well indicated homeopathic medicine for treating cough in children. The cough is usually of paroxysmal type. The most troublesome time for a cough is during the night. Sudden spells, mainly of a suffocative cough arise during night hours. A child needing Sambucus Nigra frequently sits up at night because of the coughing spells. Along with the cough, a whistling sound from the chest is also present in most cases.
Senega—homeopathic medicines for cough in the elderly
Senega is of high value for treating cough in the elderly. A rattling in the chest with marked difficulty in raising the tough sputa arises along with the cough. Soreness and oppressed sensation in the chest may also assist. Pain in the back on coughing could be present. A cough in asthma, emphysema, and bronchitis all indicates towards the use of Senega.
Cina and Coccus Cacti—homeopathic remedies for a spasmodic cough.
Cina and Coccus Cacti are significant medicines for a spasmodic cough. Cina Maritima is helpful when there is a violent cough that ends in vomiting. The cough is so intense that it brings tears to the eyes. The cough usually appears in paroxysms with attending shortness of breath. Coccus Cacti is useful when a spasmodic cough is worse in the morning. The cough ends with vomiting of viscid mucus. Coccus Cacti is also prominent when there is a cough in regular paroxysms with expectoration of much ropy mucous.
Nux Vomica—homeopathic medicine for a cough with acidity (GERD)
Nux Vomica is an important homeopathic medicine for a cough with acidity. The symptoms indicating the use of Nux Vomica are cough and difficulty in breathing with an accumulation of gas in the abdomen. Nausea, vomiting, fullness in the stomach and sour/bitter belching are prominently present with the cough.
