What Can Cause a Cough after the Flu?

A cough is one of the many possible symptoms associated with suffering from the flu, and many other infections that we commonly contract, as it is the body’s natural method of protecting our lungs and airways from irritation and infection. Coughing functions to help the body get rid of anything that may be containing something harmful to our bodies such as mucous, foreign particulates, and microbes. They can also simply be a natural reaction to something irritating that has entered our airways or lungs. This cough can endure even once the flu has completely subsided due to irritation caused by the illness that still remains, often being severe enough to last for two or more weeks, eventually lessening and dissipating with time.

Most coughs that develop due to the flu will go away on their own within a few weeks, gradually lessening once the body has recovered from the other symptoms caused by the flu. Some home remedies that can help to provide relief for the cough, such as tea containing hot lemon and honey. Other remedies such as over the counter cough medicine, cough syrups, and lozenges can provide relief as well. While there is no magic cure that just completely eradicates a flue cough, it has proven to be beneficial to stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water and to avoid any other source of irritation for your airways if possible (such as smoking, allergies, and asthma). Physicians can also prescribe an antiviral medication for those suffering from persistent flu symptoms that are not subsiding, which should lessen the degree of the cough.

Developing a cough is one of the very common symptoms associated with the flu and colds, but it can be tricky to decipher which kind of cough we have. The cough most frequently associated with a cold is known as a productive cough and is often developed by the body using mucous to trap the virus in our airways. The build-up of mucous causes us to sneeze and cough, our body’s natural method of expelling the virus through our mucous out to be rid of the infection. Dry coughs are much more common when suffering from the flu, caused by inflammation or irritation at the back of the throat and does not expel any mucous or phlegm. While productive coughs will occur early on in infections, dry coughs are more common to occur after the flu has been around for a little bit, as the viral infection is the cause of the irritation and inflammation in the airways, leading to the cough. The dry cough will typically persist for a couple of weeks even once all other symptoms experienced during the infection have gone away. If the dry cough last for longer than 3 weeks, it is recommended that you seek medical attention.

One of the absolute best things you can do to help your body recover as quickly as possible from the flu is to stay home and rest. Your immune system requires as much energy as possible to fight the virus, so resting will help to preserve that energy to be used towards just fighting the illness and will prevent the virus from spreading to others. As well, you should try to take good care of your body to support the recovery process by sleeping lots, staying hydrated and eating healthier foods. Most medication that is available will help to alleviate symptoms, such as cough medication and cough syrup, but alleviating symptoms can also help with getting more sleep and having an easier time resting, so they can also help to speed up the recovery process.

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