Bronchitis occurs when the inner lining of the lungs become inflamed and infected. This viral infection usually happens after a respiratory illness like a cold. Just when you think you’re recovering from your cold or flu, beginning signs of bronchitis can appear.
Symptoms of Bronchitis
The major symptoms of bronchitis include a cough, soreness in the chest, yellow or green mucus, sore throat, chest congestion, fever, chills, and possibly a sinus infection. Bronchitis is aggravated by smoking or exposure to smoke. If these symptoms continue for a period of time in excess of 3 months, you may have chronic bronchitis.The main cause of chronic bronchitis is cigarette smoking, but can sometimes result from exposure to toxins or dust in the air for an extended period of time.
Medical Treatment of Bronchitis
Since most cases of bronchitis are caused by a viral infection, doctors will typically ask people to get some rest, drink fluids, and wait it out. Occasionally, if there is reason to suspect a bacterial infection, a physician will prescribe antibiotics. Bronchitis can cause more issues for the elderly, the young, and those with pre-existing respiratory issues, and in those cases other treatments may be necessary to prevent possibly deadly consequences.
Additionally, doctors may recommend an over-the-counter mild cough suppressant simply to help the patient sleep at night or to ease the irritation and pain that comes from continually coughing. Coughing is the body’s natural defense against foreign material or infection in the lungs and chest cavity. So, preventing coughing altogether is not good for you. You should allow the body to cough up whatever is necessary. If the coughing becomes a problem and prevents sleeping, then a cough suppressant may be needed.
Natural Treatment of Bronchitis
The first thing everyone should do that has bronchitis is avoid smoking or being exposed to smoke in the air. Drink plenty of water to help flush your body of any toxins or infection. Use a humidifier to help loosen the mucus in your airways. You may even benefit from adding a couple of drops of tea tree oil to the humidifier water, which helps fight infections.
Honeysuckle tea which includes honeysuckle, skullcap, and forsythia is an herbal remedy that has been shown to be effective in relieving the symptoms of bronchitis including fever, cough, and chest congestion.
Cayenne pepper is also helpful in dealing with bronchitis naturally. It works to break up chest congestion quickly. Garlic, ginger, and an herb called creosote bush are all natural remedies for bronchitis. To speed up phlegm removal from your chest, you can make a tea from an herb called pleurisy root. If you are looking for a natural cough expectorant, mullein soothes the throat and relieves coughing.
As with any illness, strengthening the immune system is important to enable the body to fight off viruses and bacterial infections. To kick start your immune system, take extra vitamin c and a. Its best to get vitamins from its natural food source, but sometimes you simply can’t get enough of the necessary nutrients in the food you eat. A good quality supplement is helpful in these cases.
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Comments
sophia jason says:
Thanks for sharing your information. Bronchitis results in the swelling of the bronchi which makes breathing difficult and painful. Treatment consists of breathing through a bronchial dilator, antibiotic but just don’t use any medication without consulting first with doctor.