Nothing is more irritating than a dry hacking cough, especially if you've just experienced a cumbersome cold. Find out what causes a dry cough below.
If you are reading this, it's probably because you understand the frustration of having to deal with the aftermath of catching a cold. As if spending weeks being sick was not enough, you now have a persistent dry cough, which won’t go away no matter how many lozenges you take or teas you drink. If you're curious as to why your dry cough is still around, here are five facts to help you understand:
- A cough is a symptom of something else happening in your body. It is a natural and healthy reaction for your airways to help clear themselves of irritants, whether harmless (like dust) or more advanced (like illness-caused mucous).
- Because a cough is a symptom, treatments available for dry cough are to relieve the symptom, not the root cause of the cough. For example, you can purchase a syrup to relieve a cough but it will not cure a viral flu infection that the cough might be a symptom of.
- There are two types of coughs: One is when you cough up phlegm, which irritates your airways, either by draining down from the nose or sinuses, or by coming up from the lungs. The other type is a dry cough where there is no phlegm. This type of cough can occur after a cold, in response to a prolonged irritation or as a reflex spasm of the bronchi.
- Common causes of dry cough are viral illnesses (such as the flu), various chronic respiratory diseases, allergies, or exposure to fumes.
- Dry cough treatment varies based on its cause. A dry cough that lingers after a cold is likely due to post-nasal drip, which is basically mucous fluid draining from the nose or sinus down into airways, irritating them in the process. Treating this type of cough requires post-nasal drip management. Since post-nasal drip is also a symptom of sinus-related conditions, such as allergies and sinusitis, medications used to treat these can also be used in this case. Some examples are antihistamine or corticosteroid-based medications as well as rinsing nasal and sinus cavities with saline solution.
If your dry cough is not associated with a cold, but has been lingering for several weeks, see a doctor to help get you out of your misery.
