Cough News

Phlegm colour informative

Confirming widespread beliefs by doctors and parents alike, the colour of phlegm coughed up by people is indeed a good indicator of whether that person has a bacterial infection.

Vaccination fades in 3 years

The whooping cough vaccine given to babies and toddlers loses much of its effectiveness after just three years - a lot faster than doctors believed.

Youth gets high on cough medicine

About 3.1 million Americans ages 12-25 (5 percent) used cough and cold medicines to get high last year.

Kitchen spoons up dosing errors

New research suggests that you should steer clear of using ordinary spoons when taking or giving liquid medicines, because the practice raises the risk of potentially dangerous dosing mistakes.

Cough syrup questioned

Over-the-counter syrups and drops have little impact on the underlying cause of a person's coughing and could actually harm infants.

Cough med for fibromyalgia?

The common over-the-counter cough medication dextromethorphan may help people with fibromyalgia, according to a small study by University of Florida researchers.

Chronic coughs plague women

Women are more severely affected than men by chronic cough, which hacks away at their quality of life, says a study in the February issue of Chest.