Question: My Daughter is 2 years old. She was diagnosed with a viral infection on June 7. On June 27 she developed a constant cough that somewhat gets better after a nebulizer treatment. She coughs up clear white phlegm at night.
Do I take her to the Pediatrician again or set up an appointment with an allergist? Also can you tell me what the causes of coughing in 2 years old are? And suggest some natural home remedies and treatment.
Answer: Cough and cold are common ailments of children. Cough is caused due to irritating condition such as inflammation or presence of mucus in the respiratory tract cough.
The other cause of cough can be due to infection and allergy to dust particle, smoke etc.
If your child is not having fever, and if he is eating properly and playing, give him some simple home remedy which will be discussed below. Even after that if he is not comfortable you can consult a pediatrician.
Cough can affect a child’s health in lot of ways, he cannot eat properly, sleep gets disturbed and the child becomes more irritable.
Causes of Cough In Children
- The most common cause of cough in 2 years old children is viral infection; cough remains for at least a week after the infection gets better.
- Post nasal drip can also cause cough in children at night while lying down, due to back flow of nasal mucus into the throat and causing irritation to the glottis. This is common in children having cold.
- Bronchiolitis is a condition of lower respiratory tract; cough can also result due to this condition.
- Whooping cough can also be the reason in children who are not vaccinated against whooping cough.
- The other serious cause can be pneumonia, which causes the child to cough a lot.
Investigation advised are: X-ray chest, complete blood count.
Best Cough Medicine and Treatment For 2 Year Old
- Children who cough a lot should not be given certain food items such as ice cream, cold drinks, and bananas for some period, and fast foods.
- Crush two to three cardamom seeds into powder and add honey to make it a paste. Give this paste to your child at night before sleeping for few days.
- Paste of turmeric powder and honey given twice in a day will certainly help your child in reducing his coughing.
- Mix turmeric powder into warm milk; give him regularly in morning after the milk cools. This is also a proven remedy for cough in children.
- Aniseed is another effective home remedy. Tea made from this spice should be given to the child for few days daily to cure the cough.