Giving honey to kids with a cough for a few days helps them cough less than a fake treatment, according to good quality research.

Giving honey to kids with a bad cough might help them feel better faster than a fake treatment, cutting about three-quarters of a day off how long the cough lasts.

For kids with coughs, honey might work better than a common cough medicine called diphenhydramine at making them cough less often, but the evidence isn't very strong yet.

After three days, honey probably doesn't help coughs or sleep any better than cough medicine or a fake treatment, according to research.

For kids with coughs, honey might work about the same as a common cough medicine called dextromethorphan, but we're not very sure because only a couple small studies have looked at it.

Honey might help kids and their parents sleep better when they have a cough, compared to doing nothing. Studies show it makes a small but noticeable difference in how much sleep is affected.