Don’t you love it when you’re in the aftermath of a bad flu and though you’re all up and running now, your throat is still in the midst of sore and as good as before? You’re coughing, it hurts, and you know who’s the culprit! All that mucus: Phlegm. It’s blocking the path to a normal healthy respiratory system. Of course, you don’t love it. You hate it!
And as we have all come to learn, it’s not that easy or quick to flush out that stubborn stuck-up cough. You’ll be wheezing it out slowly, unless we get some help! It’s even worse if you’re struggling with a dry cough. You’re tiring yourself day in, day out, coughing but the main problem lingers inside.
What to do with that stiff phlegm?
So, we do know what not to do when that phlegm won’t let go. We say no to rice, to bananas: Anything sticky or starchy. We say no to ice-cold water and ice creams. Because if you so much as even touch those, it’s like the phlegm can sense it and right away, it would tighten its grip. So, if you want to move on and flush that toxic phlegm out, read this article, because we are going to tell you exactly what to do. It starts with understanding how it even gets stuck up there, from your lungs to your throat. Before we tell you the 20 hot drinks you came here for, which will help you expel your cough fully, let’s understand this cough for a minute before the adieu.
How Phlegm is formed in the throat?
Well, for starters, it’s not all that bad!
You kind of actually need the phlegm.
What? It’s not making sense? Please allow us to explain!
There’s phlegm, but, first, it’s mucus. Mucus is a secretion in our lungs and throat, which happens on a daily basis. Think of mucus as a lubricant, because that’s what it’s primarily for. It moistens the inner walls of our throat and lungs to facilitate an easy movement of air down the passage and then out of it. The mucus acts as a thin lining as well, which protects our delicate organs like the gut and kidneys.
In its natural unhindered state, this mucus is helpful. It is not a problem and we know that because it is being produced on a daily basis as it should be. However, the problem arises, when our body is under-attack by common cold or flu-like conditions. In that case, the respiratory organs have to overwork, they have to fight as well as defend, so they go on an overdrive and to counter the attack produce more mucus with hopes to get more oxygen in. The mucus also has a double job of trapping all the unwanted particles in.
Unfortunately, producing more mucus than required is no minor inconvenience. It is a big one, because now the extra mucus has to be expelled. If we don’t throw it out of our recovering bronchi, the mucus stays there and narrows the wind pipe. This means exacerbated symptoms of cough, breath shortness, and poor oxygen supply. Moreover, all the contaminants it has trapped are now lying stuck on it within our bodies, if we don’t throw these pollutants out – not good for us!
It is, then that our body initiates coughing in an attempt to get the mucus out of our lungs and throat. Our body is intuitive and always willing to help! This gooey gunk that comes out when we cough is called phlegm.
We know this particular part is not so appetizing or pleasant to read, but, the next part is.
Hang on!
20 Drinks That Help with Mucus
So, wouldn’t it be nice if we could just gobble up some magic juice, a tasty spicy drink and get rid of our mucus problems? Well, turns out, we know not 1, but 20 drinks to give you that cough relief.
And without further ado, let’s begin:
Mullein Tea
There’s a reason why this is the first entry in a list that has 20 other magical drinks! The common mullein is no ordinary remedy. Since time immemorial, Mullein has been used for the treatment of cold and other lung ailments. Also, the mullein tea is safe to drink for people of all age groups.
Rich in anti-bacterial, anti-viral, and anti-oxidising properties, Mullein or Gordolobo tea, as it is often called in Latin-speaking countries, is particularly beneficial for loosening phlegm that is stuck in your lower respiratory system. To learn more about mullein tea benefits, click here.
Water
Yup, just good old H2O can do the job! Water is a fuel to our body. Hydration helps our immune system work better and the more your fluid intake during cold, the quicker you’ll flush out the virus. Moreover, when you’re fighting a virus, your body is constantly being depleted of electrolytes and minerals, drinking more water than usual will keep you replenished. It’s even better if you can have hot water mixed with lemon juice instead of cold water. Hot water has a natural stress-busting effect, and it soothes an irritated throat.
Bone Broth
Think protein, protein, and protein. Bone broth is essentially a soup made with animal bones. It is abundant in proteins and minerals, both of which you need to stay in good health during a cold. What makes the humble bone broth even more nutritious is that it is loaded with collagen, something our body and particularly skin produces naturally but we tend to lose it with age. Collagen helps keep our tissues elastic and flexible, and collagen regenerates them. To reverse the damage that fighting an infection causes, you need collagen.
Green Juice
As the name suggests, a green juice packs in a bunch of green vegetables- kale, spinach, mint, green apple, and unripe citrus fruits. But, it doesn’t have to stop there, you could add more fruits – berries, bananas, lime, and veggies, too. Green juice will give you all the nutrition you need, and the best part is juiced veggies are easier to absorb for your body since too much fibre can become a problem in nutrient absorption. When you juice spinach and mint, you make their nutrients accessible. This will boost your immunity and help you fight infections.
Mixture of Olive Oil, Lemon, and Honey
Does a hot toddy come to mind when you hear of a mixture of lemon and honey? And we all know hot toddy is great for cold. Well, it’s not the liquor content that’s doing the charm. It’s lemon and honey. Lemon contains Vitamin C and honey is a great preservative, stir them in hot water and you have a magic potion. Together, they will not just ward off but also fight infections, and add to it a dash of extra virgin olive oil, you have a drink that will also fight inflammation and even reverse aging. It is recommended that you use extra virgin olive oil as it’s the purest form of olive oil. You can make this drink a part of your daily meal plan, even when not suffering from a cold. It helps regulate weight, bad cholesterol, and diabetes.
Turmeric Tea
What grants turmeric its bright yellow colour is the same compound that makes it a superfood for lungs. Curcumin, a polyphenolic pigment, is naturally found in turmeric, and it strengthens your lungs with regular usage. During cold, curcumin helps reduce inflammation in damaged tissue and clears your sinusitis with its powerful anti-oxidants.
Elderberry Tea
Elderberry is a part of a group of herbs that are known to expel cough, namely the anti-catarrhals. Research conducted in 2016 showed that elderberry can also significantly shorten the duration of common cold symptoms. As is with any medicinal herb, you have to know the right parts of the plant for the cure. In the case of elderberry, it is the flowers. The best way to make use of elderberry is to brew the elderflower tea for mucus.
If you can pair it with other helpful ingredients such as Mullein, it works even faster.
If you would like to read more on how to make the Elderflower tea with mullein recipe.
Ginger Tea
Most medicines given during a cold or cough fight the symptoms, wouldn’t it be nice to have something fight and kill the actual virus? That’s why ginger! Ginger is an anti-bacterial and anti-viral agent, which works against the root cause of the problem. While it is effective at killing the infection, it is also gentle on your body.
Two cups of ginger tea a day will help against the cold like no other.
Blueberry Smoothie
Bored of all the tea suggestions? Well, you could go the smoothie route with the blueberry smoothie. Blueberry is delicious and a powerful antioxidant. You need anti-oxidants during a stuck flu because your body is producing free radicals in the process of eliminating the pathogens that have attacked it. These free radicals will speed up ageing, roadblock the healing processes, and overall slow down your journey to bouncing back. A small blueberry can help you solve all that. It’s even more fun if you can blend in a smoothie!
Vegetable Juice
Doctors say you should juice your vegetables. That is the best way to consume them! Throw in all the vegetables you can think of and get – tomatoes, onions, cabbage, broccoli, everything. Juice it and drink it. Not only will you replenish your body with all the vitamins and minerals it needs, but you’ll also find it easier to have a glass of juice instead of taking all these nutrients separately. Moreover, this increases your fluid intake during cold, which is crucial if you want to flush out the toxins.
Apple Cider Vinegar Tonic
Apple cider vinegar is a drink that’s good to have even without a cold, and many use apple cider vinegar tonic for weight loss, and blood pressure control. But, did you know it can be good for your cough too? During cold, mix a spoon of the cider with a glass of hot water and have it when you’re suffering from a runny nose. This drink will help clear out your congestion.
Peppermint Tea
Peppermint has long been used as a stress-relieving, soothing drink. It calms your anxiety, helps you sleep better, and did you know it also fights against a wide variety of microbes? While it is not as strong an expectorant as mullein or turmeric, it can provide your immune system a little more support, which it needs to keep infections at bay. It also helps soothe triggered sinusitis and tonsillitis.
Pomegranate Juice
Pomegranate is the one fruit you need when you’re down with a cold. Research has shown that regularly eating pomegranate can reduce the chances of a stubborn cough and the length of cold down-times by approximately 40%. That’s a lot! Start with it now.
Clear Soup
You would naturally want to sip on something warm and comfy when you’re down with cold. The clear soup is a favourite! It’s a thinner soup with less solid ingredients and more water, this makes it easier to digest when you’re ill, while also not compromising on the nutrition or taste. Moreover, if your appetite gets affected when you suffer from flu, the clear soup might help open it up. It’s warm, rich in veggies but not overdone, increases your fluid intake, and it comforts you.
Cinnamon Tea
Cinnamon is more than a flavourful scented spice. Cinnamon is a powerhouse of nutrients – anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and anti-viral, and it directly works on opening blocked air passages. Plus, the tea tastes so good, too! It has been used in the Indian sub-continent for ages to heal from fever, cold, and cough.
Fenugreek Tea
Another tea on the list that directly works on your mucus and is a natural decongestant. If you are suffering from a really bad cold and can’t breathe well, brew a nice hot cup of fenugreek immediately. Fenugreek opens blocked air passages and also helps your throat recover from all the damage caused by the cold and coughing.
Cardamom Tea
Did you know ancient Romans and Greeks involved cardamom’s usage in treating almost all ailments? Cardamom is powerful at expelling any unwanted toxins from the body. It even works against dry cough. A healthy hot cup of cardamom tea should be your go-to if you have been struggling with a cough that just won’t go!
Ginger Syrup with Cinnamon
What happens when you mix one strong spice with another strong spice? You get an extra-strong syrup that will not leave any pestering pathogens in your body. Ginger and cinnamon are both good for your throat and lungs and bad for that excess mucus that’s stuck around too long now.
Not to forget, the ginger cinnamon syrup is super tasty too. So, if you’re feeling down, it will have you feeling good from the inside.
Licorice Tea
There aren’t many herbs that have the favours of both, the West and the East, but licorice has made a special place for itself around the globe. Traditionally, it was used to cure ailments of varied nature from kidneys to skin to lungs to stomach. It was a one fix-all.
With studies, much of its effects have been approved, while some contested but we now have scientific evidence that backs the fact that licorice is great for your sore throat and allergies. If you struggle with cold symptoms and need a healthy natural fix, two cups of licorice root tea a day can do it for you!
Onion & Garlic Syrup
Did you know that onion and garlic are herbs too? These root vegetables are quite interesting for their mysterious nature. They qualify as herbs, as spices, and lastly, as veggies too.
What makes them more interesting is their extensive use in traditional medicine to heal the body. Onion and garlic are strong blood purifiers and have cardiovascular benefits. Onion and garlic also have sulfur in high quantity, which makes it easier for your body to absorb the zinc it takes. Zinc is crucial for developing immunity against diseases.
When you are already under the weather, you do not want to contact more bacteria and viruses. More infections will keep your immune system busy and not let you get rid of existing infections, your phlegm problem would aggravate if the body can not do away with it.
This is why, a tablespoon of garlic and onion syrup twice a day will help during cold. The faster your body repairs itself, the sooner it will get rid of the stubborn mucus.
Other Ways to Help with Mucus
We don’t want to stop at just giving you some hot teas to pick from, there are other ways to get that phlegm out.
Here’s what you can do in addition to these super healthy herbal teas to fully get rid of the phlegm problem:
Salt Water Gargle
Gargling is a sure-shot way of clearing up your throat. Try to incorporate gargles into your daily routine for 10-15 minutes. If you do it with a saltwater solution, you’ll also be treating an irritated throat. Moreover, salt is a natural purifier and good for detox. You should keep in mind that undue stress on your throat would further irritate it, so being gentler and consistent is key with most things in life as well as gargles. It is a good idea to do them daily anyway, post meals.
Use Eucalyptus Oil for Reducing Mucus
Eucalyptus oil is a boon for cough. If you need to loosen the collected mucus and reduce your cough, start by gently applying this magical plant’s root oil on your back and chest before sleeping. Keep in mind that applying eucalyptus oil directly to your forehead and nose can help with cold but it can worsen your skin conditions as eucalyptus oil can cause breakouts.
Consult a Doctor
Herbal remedies are safe, effective, and nutritious, but, they are a long-term treatment. You do not drink chamomile juice and think you’ll be fine in an hour. If your phlegm isn’t being coughed out, you may have to seek a doctor for faster decongestion. Over-the-counter medication usually comprises anti-biotics and cough-relieving drugs, which help relieve you from the symptoms in a day or two. Supplementing it with herbal teas can help you get rid of the existing infections and symptoms, and strengthen you against future issues.
Eucalyptus Vapor Inhalation
In case you’re not comfortable with rubbing oil onto your skin, you can always make use of the essence of eucalyptus and its benefits by just adding 3 drops of eucalyptus oil into boiling water and inhaling the steam. This steam will directly pass via your throat, helping it recover from the cold and heating the phlegm, which leads to easier removal of it.
Conclusion
Phlegm can be hard to get out, especially when suffering from dry cough. Not removing it from the body on time can lead to blocked air passages, other infections, as well as the inability to breathe quality air.
To remove phlegm, one should increase their consumption of fluids as they facilitate the movement of extra collected mucus in the throat and help us cough the dirt out. While juices, syrups, and smoothies can all help, a hot tea will also soothe an irritated throat, and herbal teas are naturally good for our overall health and immunity.
This article has a list of 20 such amazing drinks you can have to facilitate an easy decongestion when in cold. This will free up your respiratory tract and detoxify it. In addition to herbal teas and juices, one can also do other remedies – inhaling eucalyptus vapor, salt water gargles, and pranayamas like Kapal Bhati to remove the excess mucus from our throat. However, one must not overlook a doctor and his prescription, too. A timely diagnosis and medicines are important for healing timely.
