Everybody knows what a cough is, its your body’s reaction to some particle in your respiratory system that shouldn’t be there. That’s pretty common knowledge because we all cough and sneeze just about every day.

Think about how much dust and debris makes it through our airways. When our nerves sense the presence of any such particle in our respiratory lining, our muscles in our chest and abdomen contract to push out high pressure air through our lungs that clear out anything in the way.

In fact, your larynx, more commonly known as your voice box, actually closes briefly to build up the pressure needed to clear your throat. Now, am I beginning to interest you by exceeding your knowledge in what a cough actually is?

Causes

It doesn’t end there. You see, a cough can be a sign, or a symptom, of a bigger problem. So, unfortunately, its not only dust particles that can cause a cough.

There are many different types of coughs that can be signs of many different things. Among those things are pneumonia, blood clots, asthma, or even acute heart failure. So you can see, it is important to be aware of the health problems that could be causing a cough.

Wet or Dry?

Sometimes you can get an idea of what you may be dealing with by the wetness or dryness of a cough, as well as, whether or not it produces mucus. A dry cough is usually brought on by the cold or flu, but it can also be a sign of allergies and, in some cases, the first sign of bronchitis.

Bronchitis is a cough that can affect people of all ages. It is present year round, but flares up during allergy season. The common causes of bronchitis are viruses and bacteria. On the other hand, a wet cough can be due to bronchitis also, as well as the flu and pneumonia.

However, if it is painful to cough, count out the flu because it is most likely pneumonia or bronchitis. Now if pneumonia is the case, one should see a doctor promptly because it can be fatal without antibiotics and, of course, plenty of rest and good nutrition.

Croup

Some coughs have very distinctive sounds to them that enable you to tell them apart from others. Among which is a high-pitch cough that almost sounds like a bark. This easily recognizable cough is a symptom of croup.

Croup is common among children younger than a year to about three years of age. There are no cough remedies that cure croup because it is caused by a virus, however, there are treatments that can ease the symptoms. Among which are humidified air or steam, fresh air (believe it or not), not to mention, cough syrups and fever reducers.

When dealing with this illness it is recommended you treat it at home as soon as possible to avoid it worsening and leaving you with no choice but to take further, more costly precautions.

Asthma

Now, if your cough lasts longer than two or three weeks you are probably looking at a chronic cough, or asthma. If not treated with the proper medication, asthma can lead to asthma attacks.

Asthma is usually treated with an inhaler, which is a device that delivers medicine in a chemical vapor form to the lungs. Asthma is a chronic disease that can affect anybody and, unfortunately, cannot be cured.

However, just like any cough you have, there are medicines and treatments that can significantly reduce the symptoms even if it isn’t able to be cured.

So no matter what, always know that a cough isn’t just a cough, there is much more to it than that. Knowing and remembering that, as well as taking the right precautions as soon as the symptoms occur can rid you of your cough much sooner.

Preventative maintenance is always a good thing to practice on your body. So stay healthy by making sure you get all the nutrients, vitamins and the rest your body needs then you may never have to worry about dealing with a severe cough.