How to Use Honey Wraps to Reduce Phlegm and Coughs

When a child has a cough, it can be almost as nerve-racking for the parent as it is lung-racking for the youngster. A hacking, phlegm-filled cough can become like a little black rain cloud inside a home, ruining sleep and sapping energy from a normally healthy and vibrant child. What can be done to help ease the cough and bring harmony back to the family home?

The Problem with using Cold and Cough Medicines

As most parents who’ve wrung their hands over a sick child know, there are hundreds of over-the-counter and prescription cough medicines that boast the ability to ease a child’s cough.

However, medical experts say that these medications can come with side effects, some merely annoying and some downright dangerous. According to data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, thousands of kids aged 12 and under wind up going to the hospital due to having a bad reaction to a cough or cold medicine.

In 2008, the FDA strongly recommended against giving over-the-counter cough and cold medicines to children who are under age 2.

Some of the common cough and cold medicines are in question include:

• Cough suppressants like dextromethorphan (often labeled “DM”)
• Expectorant medications like guaifenesin
• Antihistamine medicines like diphenhydramine, chlorpheniramine, and brompheniramine
• Decongestants such as phenylephrine and pseudoephedrine

These medicines should be used with extreme caution, if at all. The ingredients are powerful and overdose can be far too easy, and carry severe health consequences not worth the risk of a few hours of cough relief.

There is little evidence to support the effectiveness of these medications in children at all, in fact, as nearly all studies on these drugs have been conducted solely in adults.

The results of these studies have been generalized to include children, with children’s doses calculated—but the drugs may do more harm than good, even if the risk is slight.

How Honey can Help with Phlegmy Cough

Another idea is using honey to treat the cough. Honey is often used as a home remedy to treat a variety of problems ranging from dry skin to body detoxification.

It can help heal the damage from gingivitis, bolster liver function, naturally act as an antimicrobial treatment, and has antioxidant properties that make it a healthy choice overall. Honey is also often ingested as a treatment for sore throat, chest infections and to soothe a cough.

However, this is not the only way that honey can be used. Some parents who have children that refuse medicine because of the taste will be thrilled to know that there is an alternative to ingested remedies—a healthy and natural alternative.

Although there is little scientific evidence that this method works, some parents who have suffered sleepless, worried nights over a child’s cough have testified to its effectiveness. You needn’t swallow any syrups or take any tablets—you can also create a honey wrap to ease chest congestion and a phlegmy cough in both children and adults.

How to Make a Honey Wrap to Treat a Child’s Cough

You can make a bedtime honey wrap quickly and easily in just three simple steps:

Step 1: Gather ingredients and supplies

To create a honey wrap for a phlegmy cough, you will need the following:

• Gauze bandage
• Medical tape
• Raw honey – about 1 tablespoon
• Flour
• Vegetable oil or olive oil – about a half teaspoon

Step 2: Mix

Cut out a piece of gauze bandage a few inches square and set aside.

Blend the honey with the flour, adding as much flour as needed to create a “patty” of honey-flour mixture.

The mixture should not be sticky once blended, yet it should not be crumbly, either—add more flour or honey as needed to achieve the right texture.

Add oil to the mixture and blend it in well, then roll the “patty” in flour once more as a finishing touch.

Step 3: Apply, then remove

Stick the flour-oil-honey patty onto the gauze bandage you have prepared, and then place the bandage over the heart of the afflicted person, either on the chest or on the back.

Secure it firmly with medical tape. Avoid using any other forms of adhesive, as medical tape allows the skin to breathe and is designed to be less irritating for skin.

For children, the wrap should be left on for two to three hours and then carefully removed. Adults may wear the wrap overnight and remove it in the morning.

A word of Caution about Honey

This wrap can reportedly be used effectively on children above the age of six months — but as always — seek medical advice before trying out any home remedy on a young baby or a child.

In addition, you may want to do a patch test to make sure your child doesn’t develop any kind of allergic reaction to the mixture.

Ingesting honey should be avoided for children who are under 1 year old. Although some medical professionals believe that topical honey poses little risk to children aged 12 months or older, any treatments involving ingestion of honey (such as syrups, drinks, or foods containing honey) should wait until a child is out of infancy.

This is because of the risk of botulism poisoning. While most toddlers, older children and adults have the capability of safely digesting botulinum spores, babies have less-developed digestive systems and are more prone to botulism poisoning from honey or other botulinum spore-containing foods.

However, for older children and grown-ups, honey remains one of the safest remedies out there, and can be an effective, natural and economical choice for a worried parent with a coughing child.

Honey Warp – Does it Work?

Singapore mum Rachel Lim has tried the honey wrap on her child and shared on Facebook that it was extremely effective.

Instead of vegetable oil, Rachel used virgin coconut oil and also added ginger juice to the honey-flour mixture.

In her Facebook post, she said: “Usually about 2-3hrs into his [her baby’s] sleep, he will start coughing profusely and whine. Last night I paste the wrap for 4hrs, I never hear anything from him, no nasal block, no phelgm sound also! Throughout whole night not a single cough from him.”

Ginger, like honey, has long been used by traditional medicine practitioners to soothe coughs and sore throats and it’s also one of the best home remedies for chest congestion.

Other Natural Remedies for Cough

1. This Fruit is 500% More Effective Than Cough Syrup
2. Easy DIY Syrup for Cough and Flu
3. The Best Natural Oils for Colds and Sore throat