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Cough Medicines and Home Remedies

Cough medicines and home remedies are treatments used to reduce cough discomfort or make breathing and sleep easier while an illness improves.

Different products work in different ways. Some loosen mucus, suppress coughing or relieve congestion, while simple measures such as fluids or honey for age-appropriate children may soothe the throat. Many over-the-counter cough and cold medicines are not recommended for young children.

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Where this comes from

The American Academy of Pediatrics publishes the guidance behind this page and keeps it current. Their Symptom Checker carries a question-by-question tool for individual symptoms, and it covers this subject as background rather than as a set of questions to work through.

Open the AAP Symptom Checker

When to see a doctor

Contact your pediatrician or another healthcare professional if:

  • Your child is wheezing, has stridor or is breathing faster or harder than usual.
  • The cough comes with chest pain, blood or dehydration.
  • Fever or cough is worsening instead of improving.
  • The cough lasts longer than expected or you are unsure which medicines are safe for your child’s age.

Call 911 or get emergency care if:

  • Your child has severe trouble breathing.
  • Your child stops breathing, passes out or develops blue or gray lips or face.
  • You think your child has a life-threatening emergency.

Talk to a nurse now, at any hour

When can my child be seen

Be seen today.

Every office keeps same-day appointments for illness and injury.

This evening or at the weekend.

Most offices run After Hours Care, by appointment rather than walk-in.

If you are worried, call. We would rather answer a question that turns out to be nothing.

More on coughs and breathing

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