Parents panic when their child coughs, and they start using all kinds of cough medicine. However, in addition to taking medication, parents should also pay attention to their child's daily diet. Below are several effective dietary therapies for coughing children.
【Dietary Therapies for Coughing Children】
One: Congee Therapy for Coughing Children
1. Scallion Congee: 50g rice, 5 slices of ginger, 5 segments of scallion, 5ml rice vinegar, and appropriate amount of water. Cook the congee and drink it while hot. It has the effect of dispelling cold and relieving fever, and can have a certain effect in treating colds caused by wind and cold.
2. Chinese Yam Congee: Peel the Chinese yam and cut it into small pieces. Put it in a food processor with half a bowl of water and process it into a paste. Then pour it into a pot and heat it while stirring constantly. It is best for the baby to eat the prepared Chinese Yam Congee on an empty stomach and can be fed to the baby 2-3 times. Chinese Yam can benefit the spleen and stomach, nourish lung qi, and nourish kidney essence. It not only helps to stop coughing and treat asthma, but also has a good therapeutic effect on children's anorexia, excessive sweating, drooling, and timidness caused by qi deficiency.
Two: Beverage Therapy for Coughing Children
1. White Radish Honey Drink: 1 large white radish, 30g honey, 5 white peppercorns, and 2g ephedra. Wash the radish and slice it. Put it in a bowl and add honey, white pepper, ephedra, etc. Steam for half an hour and drink it while hot. It can induce sweating, dispel cold, transform phlegm, and treat cold cough caused by wind and cold.
2. Ginger Radish Drink: Take 500g fresh and clean white radish, 30g ginger, and 30g honey. Peel the radish and ginger, then chop them into pieces and juice them in a juicer. Add honey and drink. Ginger Radish Drink is especially suitable for relieving sore throat, coughing, hoarse voice, and other symptoms caused by winter colds.
Three: Other Therapies for Coughing Children
1. Artemisia Leaf Charcoal Steamed Egg: 5g artemisia leaf charcoal, 1 fresh egg, and appropriate amount of sesame oil.
Effect: Dispels cold and stops coughing. Suitable for children with cough, phlegm, stuffy nose, and runny nose caused by catching a cold.
Usage: Dry the artemisia leaf in shade until it becomes charcoal powder, then put it in a clean bowl and mix it with a beaten egg. Heat the sesame oil in a frying pan until it is 80% hot, then pour in the artemisia leaf charcoal and egg mixture and stir-fry until the egg is cooked. Take it once a night while hot. Take it continuously for several days.
2. Ginkgo Nut Brown Sugar Steamed Egg: 5 ginkgo nuts, 20g rock sugar, 1 egg, and appropriate amount of sesame oil.
Effect: Warms the lungs, nourishes qi, stops coughing, transforms phlegm, and relieves wheezing. Suitable for children with cough and white phlegm.
Usage: Peel off the skin and embryo of the ginkgo nuts (the embryo must be completely removed to avoid poisoning). Heat the sesame oil in a frying pan until it is 80% hot, then fry the ginkgo nuts until cooked. Add 20g of rock sugar and an appropriate amount of water. Boil for 2-3 minutes, then add the egg and cook. Take it once a night for 3-5 days.
【Dietary Taboos for Coughing Children】
1. Avoid eating too salty. Eating too much salt can induce or worsen coughing.
2. Avoid peanuts, melon seeds, chocolate, etc. These foods are high in fat and can promote the production of phlegm, making coughing worse.
3. Avoid taking supplements. Many parents give their weak children some supplements, but when the child is still coughing, they should stop taking supplements to avoid making the cough difficult to recover.
4. Avoid eating oranges. Many people think that oranges can stop coughing and transform phlegm, so they let coughing children eat more oranges. Actually, orange peel does have the effect of stopping coughing and transforming phlegm, but orange pulp can generate heat and phlegm. It is impossible for a child to eat only orange peel and not the pulp.
5. Avoid eating fatty, sweet, and heavy-tasting foods. According to traditional Chinese medicine, coughing is often caused by lung heat, especially in children. Eating fatty, sweet, and heavy-tasting foods can generate internal heat, aggravate coughing, and make phlegm sticky and difficult to expectorate. For children with asthma, overeating fatty and sweet foods can cause phlegm-heat mutual blockage, block the respiratory tract, worsen asthma, and make the disease difficult to recover. Therefore, during coughing, it is best to eat light foods.
【Nursing Measures for Coughing Children】
1. Elevate the baby's head at night. If the baby coughs continuously at night while sleeping, parents can elevate the baby's head to reduce coughing symptoms. However, it is important to regularly change the baby's sleeping position, preferably alternating between left and right sides, which helps to expel respiratory secretions.
2. Encourage the baby to drink warm water. Drinking more water can thin the baby's mucus and promote the coughing out of phlegm. If the baby wants to drink something else, it is best to avoid drinking concentrated and stimulating beverages such as orange juice and grapefruit juice.
3. Try steam inhalation for severe coughing. Let the baby inhale some steam, but do not inhale directly to avoid scalding. It can be done in a steam-filled bathroom, as the warm and humid air can help reduce the frequency of coughing.
4. Apply a hot water bag to the baby's back to relieve coughing. The temperature of the hot water in the hot water bag should be around 40°C. Wrap it with a towel and place it on the baby's back near the lungs. This kind of hot compress is particularly effective for early cold coughs.
5. Purify the air. Allergens and irritants in the air can easily cause chronic coughing. Parents must pay attention to the ventilation of the home and maintain indoor humidity. In modern urban life, it is also important to adhere to the principle of not smoking around the baby to keep the baby away from second-hand smoke.
