What can feel more frustrating than having a cough? Having a cough that happens more often or gets worse at night. It affects how much you can relax, fall and stay asleep, and get much-needed rest for recovery.
Not only does coughing affect your ability to get over any illnesses that may cause the cough, but it may also cause you to have more symptoms that further affect your nighttime rest.
Nighttime coughing can happen and feel worse for many reasons. It may be due to problems with your lungs and airways, such as infection, postnasal drip, allergies, and asthma.
Tips for Calming Nighttime Coughing
How you manage your nighttime cough depends on how serious it is and what’s causing it, Roundtreee says. She advises seeing a doctor if your cough is constant, very bad, and comes with other concerning symptoms.
In the meantime, you can try this expert advice for managing mild coughs at night:
- Stay hydrated. This can help loosen mucus and make it easier to get rid of, Roundtree says. Make sure you are providing your body with plenty of fluids. You can do this by drinking water as often as needed and eating water-rich foods like melons, pineapples, strawberries, and oranges.
- Drink herbal tea with honey and lemon. Mathis recommends teas for cough due to upper respiratory infections, allergies, and postnasal drip. “A simple remedy that’s very effective for coughing is a nighttime herbal tea with honey and lemon,” Mathis says. “Honey helps coat the throat and prevent irritation and the cough reflex. The lemon has anti-inflammatory qualities that may help cough.” You can also try other hot teas since they may be helpful to soothe an irritated throat, Roundtree says.
- Take honey. It’s a natural cough suppressant that helps reduce how often you cough and how serious the coughing is, Roundtree says. “Consider natural or locally grown honey as a bonus,” she says.
- Cough drops. These are helpful short-term fixes for soothing an irritated throat and stopping a stubborn, hacking cough, Roundtree says. “They cause the mouth to produce more saliva, thus coating the throat and helping with itching sensations.”
- Have a steamy shower. Steam from showers adds moisture to the air, which can help open your airways and loosen up secretions in the nose, Roundtree says. Take a steamy shower before bedtime to relieve your cough and help your body relax for a better night’s sleep.
- Think about what and when you eat. If the nighttime cough is due to GERD, McBane recommends avoiding heavy, spicy, fatty, and late-night meals because they may make your GERD symptoms worse and cause nighttime coughing. Foods high in fiber, water, and alkaline can improve your symptoms. So consider eating those instead at least 3 hours before bedtime. These foods include bananas, brown rice, sweet potatoes, broccoli, watermelon, carrots, cucumber, pineapple, and brothy soups.
- Try OTC medications for GERD. “Some OTC medication options include antacids like Tums or medications that block the production of acid like famotidine (Pepcid) or omeprazole (Prilosec),” McBane says. “These medications can help with the reflux-related nighttime cough by decreasing the amount of acid irritating the throat and causing the cough.”
- Take an antihistamine. Antihistamine medications, which help with allergies, may be useful for nighttime cough due to postnasal drip. McBane suggests taking an antihistamine like diphenhydramine (Benadryl) or loratadine (Claritin). She adds that they can help with postnasal drip-related cough by drying up nasal mucus, meaning there will be less fluid to collect in the back of your throat and irritate the tissues there.
- Lie with your head raised. If your cough is caused by GERD, one of the easiest remedies is to raise the head of your bed by 4-6 inches, Mathis says. “Just a slight tilt is enough to let gravity keep the stomach acid in the stomach.” McBane suggests elevating the head of your bed using bricks or blocks.
- Use a humidifier. “If the cough is due to dry air, consider a humidifier. Try to keep humidity at 40% to 50%,” Mathis says. “Any more than that could make your cough worse or increase your risk of infection.”
- Reduce allergens in your home. If your coughing is due to allergies, cutting down the number of allergens around you may help prevent it. A great tip is to clean and dust your home regularly to prevent dust buildup, Mathis says. You can also invest in a HEPA filter to get rid of allergens in the air. If you have pets, have them sleep outside of your bedroom. Wash your bedding regularly, too.
- Consider over-the-counter (OTC) medication. When all else fails, an over-the-counter cough medicine can provide relief.
Credit: webmd
