“I was always under the impression that under 6’s should not be giving cough bottles as they find it trickier to cough up their mucus in the first place so shouldn’t be further discouraged but I have recently learned that bronchio stop markets itself for over 1s???!!!! ( is that not madness?!)Just with the prominence of RSV and croup and other nasty respiratory virus could I ask you to possibly post some information regarding this?”
Cough bottles. Great topic.
Firstly, the best treatment for cough is prevention: wash hands, teach cough etiquette, keep sick children home from school/creche/playground, make sure childhood vaccinations are up-to-date, and #MaskUpButtercup #maskédothoilé When available, #flushot is #yourbestshot this weekend.
What doesn’t work to prevent viral coughs and colds? Vitamin C, Vitamin D (both have a role in supporting healthy immune system but that’s it though.) probiotics, homeopathy, and herbal tonics. They don’t work. Wash your hands.
Secondly: if concerned about a cough, touch base with your GP. Especially if your child has asthma. Uncontrolled or new asthma in children can present as a cough or a cough worse at night.
Okay, so onto the viral cough You’re right. No cough bottles. 2 reasons: 1) They are useless. 2) Some have been associated with overdose of active ingredients in children.
The common popular cough bottles marketed to children in Ireland right now are herbal prepararations containing marshmallow root and thyme. They have applied for use as a traditional product: it means they didn’t have to show that it actually works in a trial. Yes, that is legal in Ireland for certain classifications of supplements and remedies to be sold making claims that they haven’t had to prove (if you check the product information for the section where drugs have to list the pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics, you will find it just cites a law that says they don’t have to do that.).
Cough bottles marketed for adults or some purchased/imported from abroad may contain: dextromethorphan, codeine, or pseudoephedrine. None recommended for children under 12 for over-the-counter use for viral cough.
Okay, that’s all the bad news. So, what works?
1. Honey. Yes, a spoonful of honey (for children over age of 12 months). Unlike the Broncostop, there has been clinical trials. Any honey will do – doesn’t need to be local. Though local is, of course, tastier, carbon-friendly, and #supportlocal
2. Warm drinks
3. humidified air: using a warm steam or cool mist vaporiser may help
For what it’s worth, infectious disease experts to predict a particularly bad winter for viral respiratory illnesses which will include RSV, parainfluenzae, flu as well as covid. It will help for us all to do our part and practice good hygiene and cough etiquette. #ProtectEachOther
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