8 Natural Cough Remedies for Kids and Babies

The best thing is preventing the illness, but when it occurs, there are some natural cough remedies for kids and babies that could be used instead of antibiotics and chemical drugs.

We are all familiar that there are many types of coughs that are usually signs of illness in kids, but not necessarily a serious one, of course. A dry cough for example, might indicate an infection of respiratory system or asthma, and usually gets more intense during sleeping time. Wet cough includes mucus that indicates fluid aggregation in the respiratory system. This kind of a cough is the usual indicator of a cold, but might also represent the beginning of some more serious illness such as asthma or some infections. But in other cases, coughs do not indicate anything serious, if a child is playful, eats and sleeps normally, not even a natural remedy is needed. That is how the child will strengthen their immune system on their own.

Although there is a vast offer of medications and various syrups for children on the market, it is actually not recommended for small children and infants to take them. They have sometimes proven to cause counter effects and be harmful. Natural remedies (carefully chosen), on the other side, are mild and help the body recover without unwanted consequences.

Since coughs might indicate some more serious illnesses, we would recommend a visit to a pediatrician, but these natural remedies for kids and babies might ease the pain and reduce coughing. For some advice on what is best for kids and babies, we have visited sources like Healthy Children, WebMD, Baby Center, Today that all agree on some easy-to-make remedies and natural ways to help our children with illness and cough.

There are of course, other alternative methods for curing a cold, and for adults we would recommend some of the Best Alcoholic Drinks for Sore Throat, Cough and Cold. But leaving that aside for now until they grow up, let’s see what are best natural cough remedies for kids and babies.

8. Massage

A gentle massage on your kid’s chest, face, neck and back might help release pain and loosen mucus from chest and lungs and help the child cough it out easier. This mild massage helps the child a lot since infants do not cough deep enough to throw out all the accumulated mucus. Be sure that the room where you massage your child is warm.

7. Steam baths

Hot steam is good for opening inflamed bronchi and airways and it will ease the breathing, especially with drier barking coughs. This can be done during bath time, when it is important to stay in steamed bath for around 20 minutes.

6. Lots of fluids

Number 6 on our list of natural cough remedies for kids and babies is a recommendation for any kind of coughs. Good hydration is important for your child’s health and everyday life. Some recommendations for coughs for kids and babies are hot clear fluids, like water, apple juice or decaffeinated herbal tea (mild chamomile or peppermint teas).

5. Chicken soup

We are continuing our list of natural cough remedies for kids and babies with old-fashioned grandma’s recipe that helps a lot. Of course, recommended for children that can eat on their own, a warm chicken soup has shown to be a good natural cough remedy for kids and babies which eases coughing and releases the pain of a sore throat.

4. Cool-mist humidifier

Dry air is never a good thing for a sore throat and cough. The moisture that humidifier produces will loosen up mucus which will then be easier to get rid of it faster, and it will also release nasal breathing passages, which will ease coughing and breathing. This is especially important during sleeping time, so make your mist humidifier run through the night.

3. Homemade honey syrup

Honey is one of the best know remedies used since yore. The antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties of honey make it one of the best cough remedies. Since it can be combined with many other ingredients, there are many variations of this syrup. The main ingredients are honey and lemon juice, or apple cider vinegar (2-4 tablespoons of juice on ¾ cup of honey). Then you can add additional ingredients such as chopped onion and garlic, pepper, cinnamon or ginger, but children would probably hesitate to take syrup with those add-ins because of the strong taste. Also, keep note that children under 1 year should not use honey, or in just small portions (1-5ml).

2. Gargling

This is an easy remedy that helps with a cough and sore throat. Just simply add a teaspoon of salt with a cup of warm water. Then show your child how to gargle and let it do as many times as it can, since there is no limit in using this remedy.

1. Honey

Because honey is so good for a sore throat as for other things as we have seen earlier, that puts it also on number one in our list of natural cough remedies for kids and babies. We would again warn you that children under 12 months should not use honey, it might produce counter effect and lead to botulism and serious illness! For those older than 1 year, this time we recommend just simply honey, as remedy on its own. Optional add-ins are lemon (which enrich honey with vitamin C) or hot water, which will help children swallow it easier.