Help Getting Rid of a Dry Cough

My 16 month old had a dry cough about six weeks ago and I bought this homeopathic medicine from Whole Foods that was recommended to me. I swear I noticed a difference the next day! I would highly recommend you trying it at least. It's in the homeopathic section and is in a blue chap stick-looking tube thingy. There's not a specific dosage for babies, but I just gave Bella three. My friend used it and that's what she used for her 16 month old and it worked for him. They are little pellets, like once used for teething pain. They have them for all different symptoms and there's one for a dry cough and a wet cough. I don't remember the name of it, but just look for dry cough or ask someone. Hopefully, it'll work. Good luck!

Ciao,
P.

As a pharmacist and herbalist there are several options. If you want to go the herbal cough syrup option there is the Herbs for Kids line that has a great cough syrup or Orthomolecular Products has there cough syrup called Natranix. However, an old folk remedy that still works well based off of the essential oils in it is to put Baby Vicks on there feet (then put socks on) and on the chest. Works every time.

Hi M., try rubbing vicks on her feet and put a pair of socks over them (or sleepers if she pulls of socks) before she goes to bed. Doesn't work on everyone but it's worth a shot.. Good luck.

I am a FIRM believer of Vicks on the bottom of the feet with cotton socks over them.

I haven't read any of your other responses, so hopefully this isn't a repeat! I wonder if she's got some post-nasal drip draining down the back of her throat when she lies down. That could irritate her throat and make her cough. My son was doing that for about a month - he had been sick with a cold, but the cough just went on and on. A friend suggested Kid's Mucinex and it really helped. I don't know if it's ok for little tiny ones, though. My son is 5. Hope this helps!

J.

Since she is over one year old, you can try giving her a teaspoon of honey. One study quoted in Parent's magazine found that the honey was MORE effective than OTC cough medicine. And it will be much easier to get her to take the honey since it tastes so good! I have also given my kids children's mucinex but I am not sure that your daughter is old enough for that yet.

Hi M.,
This may be totally unrelated to your child's condition but my daughter suffers from dry coughs that last weeks and are worse at night and in the morning. For her it ended up being asthma. Now that we know how to deal with that the extended coughing has almost stopped completely.
Take care,
B.

It almost sounds like pneumonia. I had walking pneumonia for about 6 months when i was in middle school. I was fine until i tried to over exert myself or at night, then i would start coughing and sometimes i would cough so hard it would make me vomit a little. It might have something to do with the ear infections though, i don't know, i'm just throwing it out there.

My daughter had this for the first 2 years of her life, all winter long she had this horrible dry night time cough and once spring came up and the heater turned off she was good to go until winter. She is finally doing better this year so whatever it was she is finally growing out of it (it started when she was born and lasted all that winter and last winter) I didn't ever do honey but warm apple juice helps the cough sensation and will calm it. Delsym has been my lifesaver although now they are saying not to use it I followed a weight chart and dosage that i received from my ped before all the warnings came out, and now i still only do like 1/4 a tsp and she is 2 although she weighs 23lbs (my dainty little princess) I only used it it night as well since that is when it seemed to bug everyone cuz she was keeping us all up. Sometimes a normal cough following a cold could last 2-3 weeks. Although I wouldnt totally assume its not anything like pneumonia, i would say its just a little lasting nagging cough. If it does persist it may be worth a talk with the ped. I just remember staying awake at night listening to it expecting at any moment having to go in to clean up vomit from how hard she was coughing. Never did happen but many hours of sleep have been lost. Try the warm apple juice if nothing else, it does help.

Rub vicks on the bottoms of her feet and put socks on for the night. It works like a charm (for adults too ) :-)

It could be a lot of things. My daughter is really prone to coughs and I finally realized it is mostly allergies. You may want to get an air purifier for her room, make sure you vacuum the carpets really well, buy her a new pillow, and get her a hypoallergenic mattress cover. You would be amazed how many coughs and colds are really allergies.

If it isn't allergies there is a homeopathic remedy that a friend of mine (a microbiologist who is not a fan of homeopathy) swears by. You put eucalyptus essential oil on your finger and rub it under her lymph nodes on her neck, along her breast bone, and one the bottoms of her feet. You are supposed to put her feet on a hot water bottle after that, but it may work to put warm socks on her. It may sound nuts, but it won't hurt her so it's worth a shot.

I know this sounds strange, but I swear it works! Get Vicks or Mentholatum and rub both her feet generously with it. Cover them with socks and put her to bed. Its so strange I know, but it works with my dd and even on my husband and me! Plus you don't have to worry about giving her cough syrup (my dd always gagged on it and threw it up). Good luck and good sleep.

drinking warm water with some honey and lime juice squeezed in is helping with my cough. it breaks up the mucus, allowing it to come out when i cough. so after a few productive coughs, i get some cough-free hours. it doesn't fix everything, but it gives some relief.

When my son gets a cough I rub vicks on the bottom of his feet and have him wear socks to bed. I know it sounds funny, but it actually works.

My neice had breating problems and a persistent cough that got worse when she went to bed. In fact she was on 2 inhalers because the asthma symptoms were so bad. My sister converted her home to natural cleaning products including laundry soap and other household items that we use daily. Since she did that, her daughter has not had to use the inhaler. In fact, she has now been symptom-free for over 6 months. What I learned is that people don't realize it could be something as simple as switching stores and getting better products in our homes. I teach moms about these products and how to get safer supplies in their homes. I would love to talk with you more about how to get them from the manufacturer at a discount or even FREE! I think all moms should know about this!

____@____.com

M.,
I would try rubbing VICKS on the bottom of her feet before putting her in PJ's. That is what I use for my daughter when she has the cough or cold.

Call your pediatrician and see if you can get her some type of muscinex for kids. It will break up the cough in her chest and provide relief. Coughs can linger for weeks after a virus or cold. You can put Vicks on her chest too and layer it as that helps a bunch.

I JUST HEARD ON THE LOCAL NEWS IT IS NOT OKAY to put it on the feet though. Something about it can cause a bad reaction on the skin...I know many that suggest this and have done it for years but the makers of Vicks just put out a release not to put it on feet or under the nose, ever. I don't kow why they did this. So not sure on that one.

I use it on the chest, layer my kids and they have the Vicks Vapor plug ins where it fills the room for 8 hours with that smell.
I heard honey but it has never worked for my kids.

Always just call your Pediatrician too, they can guide you and help you out with your questions.

This is the most AMAZING remedy I've ever found and it REALLY works! My daughter had the same thing after a little cold and someone emailed this to me. Try rubbing vicks menthol rub on her feet and then putting socks on. Do it right as you put her in bed. Use the socks obviously to keep the medicine on and to keep it from getting on everything else. Put it on pretty liberally. I just goop it on, and put socks on right when I put them in bed. Then I usually leave a little bottle or sippy with water in the crib too, so they can sip on it if they cough. Also, the humidifier will help a lot. I think you will be pleasantly surprised with the Vicks though. (Just read another moms response about NOT using it on feet, here is a link to Vick site. It does not mention any health risk with putting on feet. Only near eyes. It is perfectly safe. http://www.vicks.com/safety/vaporub-message?utm_source=go...)

Although I have not used Kristin's vicks-on-foot remedy I have a friend who swears by it! I use a teaspoon of honey (as recommended by her doctor) as the honey helps to coat the throat. It doesn't make the cough go away but it helps relieve the symptoms.

Just don't use ANY store-bought children's cough or cold medicines as a recent study shows they do absolutely nothing in young children (under 4) and in some cases can actually be detrimental.

If the cough starts getting wet and persistent, you may need an antibiotic from your doctor. Good luck!

I think you should have her checked for asthma. My oldest son would do the same thing in the winter and it turned out he has asthma. He had one attack so bad that he nearly stopped breathing when he was about 18 months old. He is 24 now and still has it. We think he is also allergic to cats. When he comes to visit he still has that horrible dry cough until he uses his nebulizer. If you have pets that may also be the problem.

My kids get coughs every winter, and whenever I mention it to my pediatrician, she checks for ear infections. When they have ear infections, there are fluids running down the back of their throats and that triggers the cough. Once it was a sinus infection rather than an ear infection, but it had about the same result. So the cough should get better as her ear infection gets better, but it is still a long road. It helps to keep her head elevated. I haven't found a lot of things that really work well, so good luck and hang in there!