HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Have you or your child ever had a cough that you just couldn't get rid of? Well, with cold and flu season still upon us, this Wellness Wednesday FOX54 hears from one Crestwood Pediatrician who breaks down the various types of coughs and shares some remedies to combat it.
Crestwood Pediatrician Dr. Sarah Waling said the first thing to note is of course there are several different types of coughs. But, determining the severity is dependent upon three things. "Coughing is your body's natural way to get rid of infections. It can be dependent on your timing of your cough, the age of the child, and also the quality of the cough."
Coughs that are within the first week or two, are typically cold or viral related. "However, you can have a cough that can last more than three weeks and those can be a myriad of issues that we have to kind of triage. That can be an asthma problem for a child who may not know that they have asthma or who has asthma. And the cold virus could have set it off."
Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Ali Hassoun believes it's also important to stop the spread of germs, and shares his number one tip. "One thing we follow, if we cough , is the right way of covering our cough which reduces the transmission to others."
Furthermore, for those searching for relief to alleviate that cough Dr. Waling recommends that kids drink warm tea and honey, take over the counter medications, or a cough drop just to name a few. "Other things that they can do is humidifiers. If they feel like those work in the child's room, having a nice, cool, damp atmosphere also helps to mobilize mucus. Another opportunity is to do a steam treatment. and so parents can actually, if they have a door to their bathroom, can turn on the shower or the bathtub and let that room steam up, not allowing the child to actually get in the water, but to sit in the room."