Ayurvedic Cough Remedy
Ayurvedic Cough Remedy
Any cause of disease in Ayurveda is considered an imbalance of the dosha. Ayurvedic doctors divide coughs into three types – kapha, pitta and vata, depending on which of the doshas is out of balance. With appropriate treatment, this imbalance is normalized.
Cough needs to be treated quickly, Ayurvedic experts emphasize. If a cough caused by a disorder of one of the doshas is not cured in time, then the disease progresses, moving to the next stage, when two doshas are disturbed. For example, with Vata Pitta coughs, the amount of sputum increases, it becomes yellowish or even black in color, sometimes with blood impurities in it. At the same time, dryness remains in the throat, as with a vata-type cough. A person may be disturbed by severe pain in the chest, throat, and sometimes in the joints, the body temperature rises. If the disease is disregarded, then it is aggravated to the violation of all three types of doshas. In this case, the amount of purulent sputum increases, which makes the cough symptoms similar to those of tuberculosis.
Traditionally, Ayurvedic doctors use natural preparations to treat coughs, which include components that are not easily available. But some Ayurvedic techniques can be reproduced at home.
Vata-type cough
It is a dry cough that is accompanied by chest pain and hoarseness. Its attacks are severe, but rare, during which gray sputum is produced. Mucus comes off with difficulty, but after that there is relief until the next attack.
Vata cough treatment
Preparations with ghee are recommended (See Clarified butter). Especially effective is a remedy with a decoction of licorice root and coriander. The decoction is prepared at the rate of 1 part of dry plants to 15 parts of water. It is mixed with ghee in equal proportions and heated over low heat to thicken a little. The resulting preparation should be taken 1 teaspoon three times a day.
Very useful for this type of cough is gargling with ghee: melt it, take 1 teaspoon, add the same amount of sesame oil and dilute it in 1 glass of warm water. Gargle 5-6 times a day, preferably after meals.
Inhalation. Add a few drops of eucalyptus essential oil to boiling water. Let it cool down a bit. Breathe in warm steam for 3-4 minutes.
Diet for vata-type cough.
Food should be warm and oily. Ayurvedic doctors advise barley, wheat, green mung bean with milk in your menu. Flavor food with ghee, cumin, and fennel. Hot light soups will be very useful in this case.
Pitta type cough
It is characterized by the release of yellowish sputum (sometimes with blood), a feeling of bitterness and heat in the mouth, and hoarseness. Coughing fits are more severe and more frequent than with Vata. In some cases, fever and dizziness occur.
Pitta cough treatment
Ayurveda recommends sweet spicy drinks. Honey, cinnamon, cardamom, raisins, black pepper in a variety of recipes and combinations will help reduce Pitta dosha. After meals, in particular, it is good to drink lukewarm milk with a pinch of cinnamon and 1 teaspoon of ghee.
During the day, you can take 1 teaspoon of a mixture of ghee (4 tablespoons), honey (2 tablespoons), palm sugar (1 teaspoon), and raisins (2 tablespoons).
Ginger juice mixed with honey in equal proportions also helps.
You can relieve coughing fits with boiled milk with black pepper and raisins: 2-3 pinches and 1 tablespoon per glass.
Cleansing procedures. To remove excess Pitta dosha, laxatives can be used. For example, take, best before bedtime, aloe juice (1-2 tablespoons), or senna decoction (1/3 cup).
Diet for pitta-type cough.
Avoid very hot, greasy and oily foods. In your diet, you should include foods and spices with a bitter taste: leafy vegetables, grapefruit, olives, chicory, turmeric, coriander. Kitchari (a thick soup of rice and green mung bean), grape juice, and warm milk with honey will speed up the recovery. (See Kitchari – your body’s reset button).
Kapha type cough
Cough with constant bouts during which thick white sputum is secreted. Accompanying symptoms: profuse runny nose, heaviness in the head and chest, plaque in the throat. Dull pain in the chest, nausea and even vomiting are possible. The movement of the chest during breathing is difficult.
Kapha cough treatment
Use spicy and bitter seasoning. A mixture of honey and sesame oil (in equal proportions), seasoned with black pepper and turmeric, helps with a kapha-type cough. It can be taken in a teaspoon throughout the day. Coughing fits can be relieved with milk boiled with turmeric.
Warm gargle. Boil 1 cup water with turmeric and triphala powder, add some sesame oil, and stir. Gargle throughout the day.
Cleansing the sinuses – nasya. (See Nasya – Therapeutic Cleansing of the Head Region). This procedure is good to carry out if the disease lasts for more than a week. In the original, nasya is a complex, multi-stage ritual that is difficult to carry out on your own. Therefore, it can be simplified at home. Use ready-made Ayurvedic drops for nasya or make your own. To do this, add 1 teaspoon of grated ginger and ground licorice to 500 ml of water. Evaporate the mixture – its volume should decrease by 4 times, then add about 100 ml of oil (sesame or almond) and heat over low heat until the water evaporates. Use the resulting warm drops to wash your nose. Tilt your head back, put 2-3 drops of oil into each nostril, close your nostrils and take a slow and deep breath. This procedure will bring maximum benefit in the morning, but it can be done during the day.
Kapha cough diet.
Food should be light, warm, cooked with a minimum of water, fat or sugar. The menu should be dominated by dishes of spicy, bitter and astringent tastes. In the diet: lentils, barley, green mung beans, buckwheat, broccoli, celery, horseradish, mustard, turmeric, cloves, cinnamon, black pepper, cardamom. Useful for this type of cough will be pomegranate juice and honey, as well as hot (but not burning!) drinks, taken often but little by little.
The following Ayurvedic recipe will effectively help get rid of a strong and even chronic cough of all types and eliminate the mucus.
All ingredients can be easily found in Indian stores or in any healthy food store.
Along with eliminating cough, this recipe promotes healthy sleep, and relieves the congestion of the upper respiratory tract.
You will need:
Dried figs – 3-5 pieces;
Dried dates – 6 pcs. (you can take 3 more pieces of figs instead of dates);
Cardamom – 2 tablespoons;
Fennel – 2 tablespoons;
Fenugreek (shambhala) – 2 tablespoons (or less);
Water – 2 glasses.
How to cook:
Grind all the ingredients, add water and cook for 15 minutes. After that, use a blender. As a result you will get a delicious and thick jelly.
You can store it for several days in the refrigerator, over time it will thicken even more. Before use, it is required to dilute to a more liquid state. Relief comes almost immediately.
Other useful recipes:
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For congestion boil 1 teaspoon ginger, or a few eucalyptus leaves, in a pint of water. Turn off the stove, put a towel over your head, and inhale the steam. Even steam without herbs will be beneficial.
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For dry cough and hoarseness of voice use soothing herbs such as licorice, comfrey root, shatavari, and ashwagandha.
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For sore throat put ½ teaspoon turmeric powder and ½ teaspoon salt into warm water. Gargle every hour.
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For a productive cough, steep ½ teaspoon ajwain, ¼ teaspoon pippali and 1⁄2 teaspoon poppy seeds in one cup of hot water for 10 minutes. Drink twice a day.
See also: Asthma treatment in Ayurveda.
TODAY’S TIP: For any cough, cold food, food from the refrigerator, cold juices, and ice cream are prohibited. It is also important to exclude carbonated drinks, canned and pickled foods, and heavy fried foods from the diet.
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