Dry cough in children 2 years old. Effective treatment for dry cough in a child

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Dry cough in children 2 years old, as well as in older children, can incredibly exhaust both the baby and his parents. Unlike a wet cough, a dry cough does not bring relief and is not able to rid the bronchi of accumulated mucus. Therefore, it is so important, having received a doctor's advice, to start treatment as soon as possible.

Possible diseases

When a dry cough appears in children of 2 years old, parents should, with the help of a doctor, exclude possible dangerous ailments. Of course, most likely, the baby just picked up a banal acute respiratory disease, but perhaps the child has a more serious illness:

• Whooping cough. A childhood infectious disease characterized by a strong, simply exhausting dry cough. In this case, antitussive drugs are needed, which the doctor can prescribe.
• Inflammation of the lungs. In this case, the baby has, in addition to coughing, a high temperature. The disease is determined by listening to the lungs. An x-ray may also be needed. A small child is likely to be hospitalized. Still, the disease is serious and does not allow self-treatment.
• Tuberculosis. In this case, the cough is not only dry, but also deaf,unproductive. Mandatory treatment under medical supervision. In the future, a long rehabilitation will be required.
• Laryngitis. This is an inflammation of the throat. You can distinguish laryngitis by a characteristic barking cough. If you hear such sounds from a child, you should immediately call a doctor. The disease is dangerous due to the risk of severe swelling of the larynx and the inability to breathe normally.

In any case, if a child has a strong and unproductive dry cough, you should consult a pediatrician. If the doctor, after listening to the lungs and examining the child, does not find serious reasons for concern, then it will be possible to be treated at home.

Such a different cough

Cough can be different. Wet and dry have different manifestations. Consider their differences from each other:

• Unlike a wet cough, a dry cough does not cough up and therefore does not bring the desired effect of sputum separation.
• Dry cough appears immediately at the beginning of the disease, only then it turns into a wet one.
• With a dry cough, inflammation of the larynx or pharynx is observed. A wet cough is characterized by the formation of mucus in the bronchi.
• Drugs for a dry cough are aimed at suppressing the cough reflex, while for a wet one, sputum should be thinned for better discharge.

But when treating children, one should not get carried away with a variety of syrups for expectoration. The fact is that the baby, due to age, cannot yet cough productively. Syrups that thinsputum, increase its secretion, the child will not be able to cough up the increasing mucus, and it will begin to stagnate. This situation leads to chronic inflammation.

Dry cough. Looking for a reason

The most common cause of dry cough in 2 year olds is viral infections. Cough is not a disease, but a symptom of it. Therefore, when it appears, you should find the cause and treat the underlying disease.

If the child is lethargic, has a fever and coughs, then the baby has caught a viral infection. In this case, the doctor will prescribe medications aimed at eliminating the symptoms of the infection.

Only a doctor can tell if it's a common cold, more serious whooping cough, or pneumonia.

But it may well be that dry cough in children 2 years old is not associated with viruses. If the child is alert, he does not have a temperature and his general condition has not changed, it may be an allergic cough. You should pay attention to the environment of the baby and exclude possible allergens.

If it was not possible to find and eliminate the causes of coughing, you should consult a specialist and conduct tests for allergens.

Relieving the condition

When the doctor examined the baby and prescribed treatment, parents are able to help the baby and alleviate his condition. After all, a dry cough does not cough, but only torments the child, does not even allow you to sleep peacefully and gain strength.

Let the baby drink as much as possible. All systems in the body are interconnected. And if a person is manydrinks, then his blood thins, and, accordingly, the mucus also becomes less thick. Consequently, the child will be able to start coughing productively and remove unnecessary things from the bronchi.

When a baby is tormented by a dry cough, the air in the room should never be dry and warm. This will only make the situation worse. The air should be humidified, the room must be ventilated.

In the absence of temperature and the general normal condition, the child must definitely walk. Don't be afraid to go outside again. The main thing is that there is no severe frost or wind.

Humidifying the air, drinking enough fluids and rinsing children's noses can cure dry cough without the use of various pills and potions.

When you need to urgently call a doctor

1. Cough took on a dull, barking character.
2. Sudden dry cough is not coughed up and occurs in increasing attacks. Sensation of a foreign object in the larynx.
3. Cough causing vomiting.
4. Increasing dry cough that gets worse regardless of humidification and drinking plenty of water.

Only a doctor, having examined the child, will be able to make an accurate diagnosis and give recommendations on how to eliminate unpleasant symptoms.

Medicated treatment

With a dry cough, the baby cannot sleep and play normally. His cough is harassing and haunts him day and night. Therefore, in this case, it should be suppressed.

Cough medicines are divided into two types. Some are aimed at thinning sputum and making it less thick. The cough gets worsebecomes more productive. Accordingly, mucus is better coughed up.

Once the medicine has done its work, i.e. sputum became more liquid, and the cough is more productive, the medicine is canceled.

But for children under two years old, pediatricians do not recommend the appointment of various syrups so beloved by parents. The baby still does not know how to cough properly, and thinned mucus begins to stagnate in the bronchi and lungs.

The second type of medicine is aimed at suppressing the cough reflex and, therefore, the cough recedes.

But antitussive drugs, as well as syrups to thin sputum, should only be prescribed by a doctor.

Remember! The medicine does not cure cough, per se. Syrups and tablets act on certain receptors. They either thin the sputum and increase the productivity of the cough, or suppress the cough centers.

Antitussive medicines are commonly prescribed for whooping cough in children and may be recommended for a debilitating dry cough caused by SARS.

Physiotherapy to help baby

It happens that, despite the implementation of all recommendations, the disease does not recede. In this case, physiotherapy is recommended.

Warming up is carried out in the physiotherapy room. The necessary course and time will be prescribed by the attending physician.

In addition, a massage may be recommended for the child. The fact is that active kneading of the chest by a specialist leads to an expectorant effect. It is very useful for the parents themselves to conduct a warming massage for the child at home, kneading the sternum and back.

Treatment in folk ways

Since ancient times, peoplewere looking for ways to get rid of all sorts of ailments with the help of improvised means. Mankind has accumulated a lot of experience and knowledge used to get rid of cough at home.

But before checking folk methods on a child, it is advisable to consult a doctor. After all, many people think that herbal treatment is harmless, but at the same time they forget that these drugs can cause great harm.

So many medicinal herbs are poisonous and simply not recommended for young children. But if mom uses, for example, milk to treat a cough, then it won't hurt.

Milk will come to the rescue

With a dry cough in children, for a long time, knowledgeable grandmothers offer such a remedy as milk with honey and butter. Due to its availability, this method remains relevant to this day.

Despite the seeming simplicity, this treatment gives its results. After the first cup, drunk before bedtime, the baby feels better.

Milk with honey and butter can soothe an irritated throat and reduce coughing fits. The main thing is that the liquid is not too hot, otherwise you can only worsen the condition of the child. Very hot milk will irritate the inflamed mucous membrane and increase the cough.

It happens that children do not want to drink milk with butter. Do not insist that the child empty the whole cup. Enough a couple of spoons before bedtime. You can also offer your baby a spoonful throughout the day.

But before you give your child hot milk with honey, you need to besure that the baby does not suffer from allergies to bee products. In any case, you can simply offer a cup of milk with a piece of butter. The latter will soothe an irritated throat and help relieve a dry cough.

Black radish as a storehouse of vitamins

Our great-grandmothers knew about this root crop. They used it to treat small children. Black radish contains a lot of vitamin C, organic acids and mineral s alts. Thanks to the essential oils included in its composition, it has a sharp taste reminiscent of onions.

With the help of radish juice, many diseases are treated, such as SARS, bronchitis. Juice helps very well when the baby has a dry cough that does not clear his throat and does not give rest. Consider how it is recommended to use this remedy.

Black radish for cough

How to use such a useful root vegetable and treat dry cough in babies? Everything is simple. It is enough to choose a ripe vegetable without damage and cut off the top.

Then cut a hole in the radish and fill the resulting hole with honey. From above we cover this place with a cut top and leave it in the refrigerator for 3 hours. During this time, honey extracts the juice, which contains many essential oils and vitamins.

After the specified time, take out the radish and give the child the resulting juice. Pour honey into the hole again and refrigerate. As soon as the juice stops forming, you should take a new root crop. But usually one vegetable is enough.

Black radish with honey is not for childrenhurt. The only exception is an allergy to bee products. In this case, you can try pouring a weak sugar solution that will draw out the juice.

Cough radish helps very effectively. In addition, children usually like the sweet taste of the proposed medicine, which looks so unusual. And many parents prefer natural remedies instead of pills and potions.

Radish juice with honey is considered an excellent antitussive, in addition, it has a significant anti-inflammatory effect. Pediatricians recommend radishes to prevent serious diseases such as bronchitis and whooping cough.

How to use radish

Babies should take juice three times a day, one teaspoon. It is better to give juice before meals.

Despite all the usefulness, black radish is not used as food. As an additive for salads, it can be consumed no more than 1-2 times a week. For the treatment of babies, radish juice is used for no more than seven days in a row.

Cocoa butter for dry cough in babies

Everyone knows that children do not like to take drugs and pills. Sometimes a child refuses to take even a tasty and sweet mixture.

But many children love cocoa. And the oils found in cocoa beans can reduce bouts of dry cough.

Those who don't really want to drink a cup of real cocoa can be recommended to buy cocoa butter in a pharmacy. It is absolutely harmless and is recommended for the treatment of influenza, SARS and the removal of their symptoms, as inadults and children.

Cocoa butter contains theobromine, which fights bronchitis and asthma. And it is also full of vitamins, such as C, E and A, which strongly help to overcome the disease.

To treat dry cough in children, you can add butter to warm milk. Drinking such a medicine is recommended often and little by little. One teaspoon of oil is used per glass of milk. If there is no allergy, you can add honey.

If, in addition to coughing, the child suffers from a sore throat, offer him to dissolve butter like candy, thus lubricating the inflamed places.

You can also add cocoa butter to badger fat for rubbing. The aroma of chocolate will surely appeal to children.

Before using any folk remedy for treating a child, you should consult a doctor and take into account possible contraindications.