Make Cough Medicine with Lemon Juice

Coughing is the way the body gets rid of mucus and foreign material from the lungs and upper respiratory passages. This can be important to remember when you have a cough, because often you don’t want to totally suppress it. You do want to make it easier on your body when the cough is never-ending, but you still want to be able to cough, allowing your body to get rid of the mucus buildup. In order to relieve some of the discomfort associated with a cough while not eliminating the cough completely, consider making your own cough medicine at home.

Steps

Making Cough Medicine at Home

  1. Make honey and lemon cough medicine. Gently warm up one cup of honey over low heat. Add 3-4 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice to the warm honey. Add ¼ to ⅓ cup water to the honey-lemon mixture and stir while continuing to heat on low. Refrigerate the mixture. When you need the cough medicine, take 1-2 tablespoons as needed.
    • Medicinal honey, such as Manuka honey from New Zealand, is recommended but any organic honey will have antibacterial and antiviral properties.[1]
    • Lemon juice contains high levels of Vitamin C-- the juice of 1 lemon contains 51% of the daily Vitamin C requirement. Lemon juice also has antibacterial and antiviral properties.[2] It is believed that the combination of Vitamin C and the antimicrobial properties make lemon useful for coughs.[3]
    • Do not give honey to any child under 12 months of age. There is a small risk of getting infant botulism from bacterial toxins sometimes found in honey. There are less than 100 cases of infant botulism in the US every year and most babies recover fully, but better to be safe![4]
  2. Use an alternate method of making honey and lemon cough medicine. Cut a washed, whole lemon into thin slices (along with the skin and the seeds). Add the slices to one cup of honey. Heat over low heat for 10 minutes with constant stirring.
    • Break up the lemon slices as you stir.
    • Once finished cooking, strain the mixture to get the leftover lemon slices out and then refrigerate.
  3. Consider adding garlic to the honey and lemon cough medicine. Garlic has antibacterial, antiviral, antiparasitic and antifungal properties.[5] Peel 2-3 cloves of garlic and chop them as finely as possible. Add it to the honey-lemon mixture before you add water. Heat on low flame for about 10 minutes. Then add ¼ to ⅓ cup water to the honey-lemon mixture and stir in while heating over the low flame.
    • Refrigerate the mixture. When you need the cough medicine, take 1-2 tablespoons as needed.
  4. Consider adding ginger to the honey and lemon cough medicine. Ginger is often used to improve digestion and to treat nausea and vomiting, but it has also been traditionally used as an expectorant. It can help a cough by thinning out mucus and phlegm and as a bronchial relaxant.[6]
    • Cut and peel about 1.5 inches of fresh ginger root. Finely grate it and add to honey-lemon mixture before adding water. Heat on low flame for about 10 minutes. Then add ¼ to ⅓ cup water, stir the mixture, and then refrigerate.
    • Refrigerate the mixture.
    • When you need the cough medicine, take 1-2 tablespoons.
  5. Consider adding licorice to the honey and lemon cough medicine. Licorice is also an expectorant. It is mildly stimulating, so it helps to produce phlegm and thereby remove it from the lungs.[6]
    • Add 3-5 drops of Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) essential oil or 1 teaspoon of dried licorice root to the honey-lemon mixture before you add water. Heat on low flame for about 10 minutes then add ¼ to ⅓ cup water to the mixture while continuing to heat over the low flame.
    • Refrigerate the mixture. Take 1-2 tablespoons as needed.
  6. Use glycerin as a substitute for honey. If you don’t have, don’t like, or can’t use honey, substitute glycerin. Heat ½ cup of glycerin with ½ cup of water over low heat. Then add 3-4 tablespoons of lemon juice to the mixture. Add ¼ to ⅓ cup water to the glycerin-lemon mixture and stir while continuing to heat over the low flame. Refrigerate the mixture. When you need the cough medicine, take 1-2 tablespoons as needed.
    • Glycerin has “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS) status with the FDA. Pure glycerin is a colorless and somewhat sweet vegetable product that is used to make all sorts of ingestible products and personal care products.[4]
    • Because glycerine it is hygroscopic-- it takes up water-- it can be helpful in small amounts to reduce any swelling in the throat.
    • You should get natural glycerin (and not the synthetic or man-made form).
    • Be aware that glycerin is used to treat constipation, so if diarrhea becomes a problem, reduce the amount of glycerin used (¼ cup glycerin with ¾ cup water in the basic recipe).
    • Prolonged and excessive ingestion of glycerin can increase blood sugar and blood fat levels.[4]

Assessing Your Cough

  1. Understand the possible causes of a cough. The most common for acute coughs are: the common cold, influenza (better known as the flu), pneumonia (an infection in the lung(s) by bacteria, viruses or fungi), chemical irritants, and whooping cough (also known as pertussis is a highly contagious bacterial lung infection).The most common causes of chronic coughs are: allergic reactions, asthma, bronchitis (an inflammation of the bronchi or air tubes in the lungs), gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), and post-nasal drip (mucus drips into the throat from the sinuses causing an irritation with a reflex cough).
    • There are other less common causes of cough including other lung disorders such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis.[7]
    • Coughs can also be due to side effects of medication. This is particularly the case with a class of blood pressure medications-- the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. [7]
    • A cough may be the side effect of other illnesses including: cystic fibrosis, chronic and acute sinusitis, congestive heart failure, and tuberculosis.
  2. Decide whether you should see a doctor for your cough. Try home remedies for 1-2 weeks. For most coughs, these should provide enough relief for you to recover. If there is no improvement after 1-2 weeks, however, make an appointment with your physician for a full diagnosis and to determine your best course of action.[8]
    • Also, make an appointment with your physician if during that 1-2 weeks you experience: any fever of more than 100 degrees F for more than 24 hours, coughing up greenish-yellow thick discharge (this can indicate a serious bacterial pneumonia), coughing up mucus with streaks of reddish or pinkish blood, vomiting (particularly if the vomit looks like coffee grounds-- this may indicate a bleeding ulcer), difficulty swallowing, or difficulty breathing, wheezing or feeling short of breath.
  3. Assess whether a child needs to go to the doctor for a cough. There are some illnesses that can incapacitate children more quickly and some illnesses that children are especially prone to get. Because of this, you need to assess their coughs differently. With children, call your physician immediately if they experience any of the following:[9]
    • Any fever over 100 degrees F.
    • A barking type of cough-- this may be croup (a viral infection of the larynx (voice box) and trachea (windpipe, breathing tube). Some children may also experience stridor, which is a high-pitched whistling or gasping sound. If your hear either of these types of sounds, call your physician right away.
    • A wheezy, gurgling type of cough that may sound raspy or whistling. This could be bronchiolitis, potentially caused by the respiratory syncytial virus (RSC).
    • A whooping sound when your child inhales, which is likely whooping cough.
  4. Decide whether a cough needs treatment. Remember that coughing is the body’s natural way of getting rid of bacteria, viruses, or fungus-filled mucus, and that is a good goal! However, if your or your child’s cough is not allowing you to rest or sleep, or is causing any difficulty in breathing, it is time to treat that cough. You need adequate rest and sleep when you have a cough, so that is where remedies can be useful.
    • You can use many home remedies as much and as often as you want. They will also help keep you hydrated, which is very important as your immune system and body recovers.



Tips

  • Take 2 tablespoons of your favorite cough medicine right before bedtime to help you sleep better and get the rest you need.
  • Make sure to stay well hydrated-- drink at least 8-10 8 ounce glasses of water every day.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3609166/
  2. ↑ Reichling J.,Schnitzler P., Suschke U., Saller R., Essential Oils of Aromatic Plants with Antibacterial, Antifungal, Antiviral, and Cytotoxic Properties – an Overview. Forsch Komplementmed 2009;16:79–90
  3. ↑ http://nutritiondata.self.com/foods-009101000000000000000-w.html?maxCount=122
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 http://www.drugs.com/inactive/glycerin-448.html
  5. ↑ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10594976
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 http://www.herbaled.org/Education/Articles/cough_fs.html
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 http://www.mayoclinic.org/symptoms/cough/basics/causes/sym-20050846
  8. ↑ http://www.mayoclinic.org/symptoms/cough/basics/when-to-see-doctor/sym-20050846
  9. ↑ http://www.parents.com/health/cough/how-bad-is-that-cough-7-bad-coughs-to-worry-about/
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