Honey Helps Kids' Coughs
Honey for acute cough in children.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Honey caused nearly double the gastrointestinal symptoms compared to placebo.
Honey is often seen as gentle and natural, but here it led to issues like nausea in 12% of kids vs. 11% on placebo (RR 1.91).
Practical Takeaways
Use 1-2 tsp of honey at bedtime for up to 3 days to reduce cough and improve sleep in kids over 1 year.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Honey caused nearly double the gastrointestinal symptoms compared to placebo.
Honey is often seen as gentle and natural, but here it led to issues like nausea in 12% of kids vs. 11% on placebo (RR 1.91).
Practical Takeaways
Use 1-2 tsp of honey at bedtime for up to 3 days to reduce cough and improve sleep in kids over 1 year.
Publication
Journal
The Cochrane database of systematic reviews
Year
2018
Authors
O. Oduwole, E. Udoh, A. Oyo-Ita, M. Meremikwu
Related Content
Claims (8)
Honey helps people with colds feel better overall, cough less often, and have less severe coughs than usual treatments, according to medical studies.
After three days, honey probably doesn't help coughs or sleep any better than cough medicine or a fake treatment, according to 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.
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.