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The Best Alternative Cough Mixture

05 August 2006

The conventional remedies are useless, so do herbal concoctions offer any relief?

Winter ills come in a variety of guises, none more irritating than a cough that won ’t go away. Mounting evidence suggests that conventional cough suppressants are ineffective and may even be dangerous. But what can you do if you have a sore throat and you can ’t stop coughing?

Doctors often recommend over-the-counter (OTC) cough mixtures, despite the lack of evidence that they work. A recent review (BMJ, 2002; 324: 329-31) involving 2166 individuals found that, in 60 per cent of studies, cough medications were ''no better than placebo''. In the remainder, say the researchers, positive results were small and ''of questionable clinical relevance''.

Conventional and OTC treatments are usually aimed at suppressing symptoms, and many are of questionable safety and value. Codeine doesn ’t suppress coughs, but can produce constipation. Some mixtures contain alcohol, a...

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