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Treatment of dry and wet cough with onions
Last reviewed: 04.07.2025

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We cannot imagine our diet without onions. Despite the smell and bitter taste, we add them to salads, first and second courses as seasonings, and prepare sauces based on them. What is the reason for such a passion? Most likely, mankind has known the beneficial properties of the vegetable for many thousands of years. Even in the times of Hippocrates and Avicenna, people were treated with onions for rheumatism, gout, sore throats, colds, and obesity. It was believed that it could save people from the plague and typhoid fever. Onions are still positioned as an effective folk remedy for coughs. Does onion really help with coughs?
Benefits of onions
What components of onion determine its benefits? It is rich in organic and amino acids, essential oils, vitamins PP, C, E, group B, it has a large number of micro- and macroelements: iron, magnesium, calcium, potassium, fluorine, phosphorus, chromium, silicon, sulfur, which gives a specific smell; phytoncides, glucose, glucinin, flavonoids, kaempferol, etc. Onion is a natural antibiotic that kills pathogens. It improves immunity, intestinal motility, fights viruses, promotes water-salt metabolism, is useful for atherosclerosis and hypertension, and is widely used in cosmetology. Onion is also effective for cold symptoms, in the treatment of the respiratory tract, cough.
Indications
In cold seasons, when the air temperature drops, there is less sun and vitamins, the immune system is greatly weakened. Therefore, every winter an epidemic of one or another strain of flu is expected, the number of colds increases sharply. The disease is always accompanied by sneezing, severe runny nose, weakness, fever, sore throat, cough. All these symptoms are an indication for the use of onions as a remedy aimed at eliminating them, strengthening the body's defenses.
Onion for a runny nose
The first signs of the disease "shoot" with a powerful stream of fluid secreted from the nose. During this period, bacteria rapidly multiply, irritating the mucous membrane and causing it to swell. Swelling, it closes the nasal passages, preventing free breathing. To relieve nasal congestion, you cannot do without drops, otherwise sleepless nights are guaranteed. Onions for a runny nose will help you avoid expensive pharmacy products.
Onion for dry cough
As the inflammatory process descends lower, similar processes occur with the upper respiratory tract. The body tries to reflexively get rid of bronchial secretions, causing contraction of a number of muscles. Sometimes coughing and sore throat last for another month or month and a half after the disappearance of the main signs of acute infection, dry cough is especially painful. The body needs help to move into the phase of productive cough, reduce the viscosity of sputum, remove it, restore damaged epithelium. In the complex therapy of the respiratory system, along with drug treatment, traditional medicine is worthwhile; a banal onion can help with dry cough.
General information onion cough treatment
In the notebooks of every family there are recipes with onions for cough. Especially often mothers resort to them to treat their children. But only with the entry of the Internet and social networks into our lives did it become clear how many options actually exist. This is not surprising, because no matter what you combine a product rich in healing composition with, it can only benefit from it.
Onion recipes for cough
Most often, onions are used to prepare cough medicines - the most common type of vegetable plant in our country. Here are some recipes with onions for coughs:
- boiled onion for cough - peel the onion, chop it, add water and simmer over low heat for an hour or an hour and a half until the volume is reduced by half. After cooling, the resulting onion decoction is filtered and taken in a tablespoon 5-6 times a day;
- onion with honey for cough - honey perfectly complements any recipes for colds, because it has anti-inflammatory, tonic, antibacterial properties. It has a complex chemical composition, which contains a lot of components useful for the body. There are many varieties of bee products, depending on the plant from which the pollen is collected. Linden, buckwheat, flower are best for treating coughs. It is necessary to remember that when heated, honey loses some of its medicinal properties: some of its vitamins and enzymes are destroyed. Therefore, after preparing the onion in water and cooling it to 50 0, you can add honey;
- onion with sugar for cough - by adding sugar during the preparation of the drink, we get not only a healthy, but also a tasty syrup. All ingredients are combined at the very beginning of cooking. For one onion you will need a glass of sugar and the same amount of water. After boiling over low heat until a viscous state is obtained, remove and strain;
- milk with onion for cough - instead of water, milk is often used when preparing onion broth. The onion is peeled, cut in half, poured with milk and boiled until completely softened. For greater effectiveness of the remedy, honey is added;
- onion with apple for cough - combining these two products, they enhance the harmful effect on infectious agents, prevent their reproduction, liquefy phlegm, promote their rapid removal from the bronchi, because apples contain vitamins, including ascorbic acid necessary for treatment, micro- and macroelements, flavonoids. One onion and one medium-sized apple are cut into slices, poured with two glasses of water and simmered for a long time on the fire until half the liquid remains;
- onion juice for cough - this recipe does not require heat treatment. Several onion heads are grated or chopped in a blender. The resulting mixture is sprinkled with sugar, you can also add honey. After cooking, let it sit for a few hours, it is better to do this overnight so that the onion releases the maximum amount of juice;
- onion infusion and syrup - will help reduce the irritating effect on the stomach and intestines. The syrup was mentioned above, but to prepare the infusion you will need onion, sugar, honey and boiling water. After cutting the onion into small pieces, place it in an enamel or ceramic dish, pour boiling water over it, add sugar. After the temperature drops, add honey, close, and leave for several hours. The approximate proportions of the ingredients are as follows: onion head, 100g sugar, glass of water, tablespoon of honey;
- onion tincture for cough - all tinctures are prepared on an alcohol basis and are stored for a long time. That is why it can be made in advance so that it can be used immediately if necessary. Several onions are chopped and poured with vodka or alcohol. For half a liter of 40 0 alcoholic drink, 2 medium heads are enough. The container is tightly closed and aged for 2 weeks. Take 20-25 drops before meals, children cannot be treated with this remedy;
- onion and garlic for cough - to enhance the effect of onion and even double its medicinal properties is possible with another vegetable - garlic. It is rightly called a natural antibiotic because of its many useful substances, especially allicin - an organic compound formed during mechanical damage to the vegetable. It has a powerful bactericidal and antifungal effect. Prepare the potion as follows: finely chop 2 onions, crush peeled garlic cloves with the flat side of a knife (one small head or half a large one), pour 0.5 liters of hot water, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes. You can add honey to the cooled broth;
- onion, apple and potato for cough - this recipe is attributed to Vanga - a famous Bulgarian healer and fortune teller. One cut vegetable is placed in a liter of water, the container is kept on low heat until half of the liquid volume evaporates;
- onion and potato for cough - you can use 2 ingredients, using the previous recipe, only reducing the amount of water by 250 ml;
- Onion jam for cough - the ingenuity of housewives has no limits, the benefits of treatment want to be combined with a pleasant taste. This recipe will satisfy both. To get jam or marmalade, you need to chop half a kilo of onions, put the same amount of sugar per liter of water. On low heat, the mixture simmers for several hours until a viscous thick amber substance is obtained.
Common to all recipes is the dose and method of application. Onion derivatives that have undergone heat treatment can be consumed before meals, those prepared from raw onions - best after meals. The average dose for adults is a tablespoon. Alcohol mixtures are dosed in drops.
Onion for cough during pregnancy
Unfortunately, pregnant women also suffer from colds and coughs. Sometimes this becomes a real test for a woman, because the usual medicinal treatments cannot be used until the situation is critical, but treatment is necessary. A tearing, frequent cough is dangerous due to increased uterine tone and spasmodic pain. In this case, folk remedies will come to the rescue, including recipes using onions as the main ingredient. If the smell of the vegetable does not cause unpleasant sensations and reactions, then all the recipes given, except for the alcohol one, can be used for treatment. Onion gruel with honey is also used for compresses on the chest.
Onion for cough for children
Pediatricians are not against treating children with onions in combination with their prescriptions, provided that reasonable doses are observed. Moreover, they believe that from the first signs of acute respiratory viral infections, flu, tonsillitis or tracheitis, it is necessary to start taking the remedy and assign it a general strengthening, immunostimulating, anti-inflammatory, thinning with an expectorant effect role. Up to a year of a child's life, onion treatment is not carried out. After this age, you can carefully try, after 3 years - in the absence of contraindications, there are no warnings. In order not to cause rejection of onions, it is worth adding honey or sugar. The dose for children is half that of an adult - a teaspoon at a time. It is best to give the child the remedy after meals, so as not to irritate the gastric mucosa, give it to drink with water.
Contraindications
Hypersensitivity to onions can interfere with the treatment of cough. Other contraindications include inflammation of the pancreas, gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer, increased excitability of the nervous system. Onions should be used with caution in cases of kidney, liver, gall bladder, and heart disease, especially in the acute stage. Ignoring contraindications may result in an allergic reaction or exacerbation of the above pathologies. Diabetic patients should not use recipes containing sugar.
Reviews
Treating cough with onions is a "bearded" method of getting rid of both dry and wet coughs of various causes. Reviews indicate that this folk method was used by smokers, allergy sufferers, and patients with colds and infectious diseases of the respiratory tract. The assessment of most of them is positive, it was noted that it soothes a tearful barking cough, and also helps to remove phlegm. Especially often, recipes with onions are used by mothers to treat children, because few people prefer chemical drugs if there is a safe and effective natural method that speeds up recovery.