Monthly Boost April 2008

Within the same week of Easter snow, the UK have decided to remove cough medicines from shelves due to fears of ‘accidental’ over dose for children under the age of 2 years. Most of you Americans may be surprised it has taken so long for this to occur as there were various studies carried out in the USA to show that such cough medicines have no benefit over so-called placebo dummy syrups. So now in the UK they are only available over the counter in pharmacy stores. My obvious question is ‘why continue to sell them?’ if they are of no benefit and if anything have side effects which include; anaemia, nausea, nasal stuffiness, dry nose, throat and mouth (the very ailments that are suppose to be ‘cured’), seizures, dizziness, sedation, anxiety, vomiting ..and the list actually does go on…What on earth must the immature detox system think in such young children?

I received a few emails asking what alternatives could be recommended, before I touch on these it would be a good idea to explain some vital facts on ‘cough’.

What is a cough? It is basically a way of the body trying to eliminate ‘toxins’ from the lungs. These toxins may be viral, bacterial, chemical or even emotional (yah emotional) based. So we want to encourage the body to effectively and efficiently cough out this toxin(s).

Are there different types of cough? Yes there are what we call dry and wet coughs. Simply the dry coughs have no ‘mucus’ and the wet ones do! No brain cells lost over that.

In traditional medicine we have two types of cough medicine:

1. Expectorants: these are a class of cough medicines that help to get congestion out of the lungs, thinning the mucus and helping it to become more mobile/loose, so that the cough reflex can bring it out more effectively
2. Suppressants: (this word in itself translates ‘stupidity’ to a naturopathic physician, but why let the emotions get in the way?) Basically this class of cough medicines helps ‘STOP’ may I repeat again ‘STOP’ the cough. Now some of you, who may have had your morning stimulant to get you going may ask ‘why would you want to stop a cough from expelling ‘toxins?' beats me people, ask the cough suppressant makers, I will spare you my thoughts.

Of course if the infant or any individual has serious difficulty breathing, coughs up blood or abnormal discharge or seems very ill then professional help should be sought.

Now let us get back to the more natural ways of approaching coughs…

• Ensure the infant is having plenty of fluids by that I mean good quality water

• Avoid all sugar and junk such as preservatives, white flour products, colourings etc..all these hinder the body’s healing capacity

• Give a good probiotic, if the infant is being breast fed then the mother can take it and the benefits will come through the milk, otherwise you can open up the capsule and put either the powder in some of the infant’s food or onto the tip of your finger and give it that way BUT whatever you do I would recommend avoiding the sugar laden yogurts or their drink equivalents (that’s all marketing hype as the sugar in these products go onto feed the ‘bad’ bacteria as well as hinder the immune system..ouch!)

• Use a herbal based cough syrup (for more details drop me an email)

• Both eucalyptus and myrrh aromatherapy oils are very good expectorants and anti-virals which can be rubbed onto the chest in a carrier oil such as apricot kernel oil (1 drop of aromatherapy oil in 1 teaspoon of carrier oil). Always test a small patch of the skin first for sensitivity before using

• And of course the ‘mum and baby’ homeopathic remedy kit is such a big hit for helping mum and the little one from 0-7 years of age which covers some homeopathic cough remedies. To purchase a kit, click here and request a homeopathic mum and baby kit.

Remember, that if the cough is not upsetting the infant then there is no need to do anything significant. 

If the coughs, colds and/or flu’s keep reoccurring or linger on then I would recommend working with a professional in order to boost the infant’s constitution hence reducing the incidence of illnesses.

To you and your families health!

Khush