How to Stop Chronic Acid Reflux Cough?
Do you know that your chronic or persistent cough can be due to acid reflux disease? The odds are high! One in every 3 sufferer has been found to suffer chronic cough due to acid reflux!
Interestingly the other typical symptoms of acid reflux like heartburn and chest pain may not be felt at all. Unfortunately this type of cough gets confused with common cough and the treatment given for that doesn’t work.
If remain untreated common cough can cause bronchitis and pneumonia which can be life threatening.
How the chronic cough gets associated with acid reflux?
Some times the food pipe may tolerate the food flowing upwards from the stomach but when it reaches the throat, the throat doesn’t tolerate it. The food some times gets in to the lungs resulting in persistent cough. Ensure that your acid reflux diet menu is free from those foods that cause such problems.
When refluxed acid enters the throat and voice box it can cause inflammation and swelling of the throat tissue leading to sore throat, hoarseness and coughing.
Acid reflux fluids passing the larynx can also enter lungs resulting in coughing and choking. This is known as aspiration and over time, aspiration can cause damage to lung tissue which can lead to fibrosis. Progressively aspiration can lead to lung infections that result in pneumonia.
Many common heart medications like nitrates and beta blockers are responsible for chronic cough by causing acid reflux. Even medical conditions like Asthma and Diabetes can lead to acid reflux cough.
Over the counter available common cough medications like cough syrups etc which are good for cough caused by common cold or allergies are not going to work at all. It is the cures for heartburn that may give some relief.
We can’t treat the symptoms. We need to treat the cause. Acid reflux cough can only be treated by treating acid reflux.
Many natural and home remedies for acid reflux can be useful in stopping chronic acid reflux cough. If natural methods don’t show good results then consultation with a doctor will be required to avoid getting into complications of getting pneumonia attacks.
Learn more about causes, symptoms and prevention of acid reflux in the other related articles:
Other related articles
|