Try These Cough Remedies for Kids at Night

Each fall, we deal with the same thing! One kid comes home from school or daycare with a cough and soon it gets passed around to every member of the household. It is always seems like the misery and coughing spells peak at night.

No parent enjoys spending the whole night awake, seeing their children restless from a nighttime cough. Hopefully some of these cough remedies for kids at night will have you prepared for the next time you’re woken up by kids coughing at night.

Cough Remedies for Kids at Night

There are a variety of medicines to help with nighttime coughs. But many of them don’t work and getting your kids to take them can be difficult. In search for a new list of remedies to try, I was surprised to find many natural ways to help get rid coughs. I hope you can add to your list also!

Cough Remedies for Kids

Check out the child’s surroundings. If your child has a chronic cough, make sure all mattresses, bedding, and clothing are clean. Have you dusted the curtains or blinds recently (or ever!)? Are there clumps of dust on the ceiling fan. Dust can make it difficult for young lungs to breathe. 

Pro tip: Use an old pillow case to dust the ceiling fan blades. Slip the pillow case over the blade, like the fan blade is the pillow, wipe off the dust from the outside of the pillow case. All of it will fall into the pillow case and not into the air or on the floor. 

When It’s Your Baby Or Toddler Coughing at Night

Always check with your pediatrician when your baby is coughing at night, especially before trying medication or natural home remedies. I put that 24 hour nurse line to good use when my kids were babies. Don’t be afraid to call! The upside is that your calls and trips to the doctor’s office will drastically decrease when they get through kindergarten. 

Many cough hacks include honey, which is an ingredient that infants should not be given until after a year old.  

Also, most congestion and cough medicine should not be given to toddlers and babies, which is another good reason to run any ideas by your child’s doctor first. 

Related: What you should know about Benadryl for Cough

However, I know that the sound of a baby hacking through cracks the hardest adult heart. Here are some things that have worked in the past when my children were babies. 

Sitting in a hot steamy bathroom. At our doctor’s suggestion, when the coughing was bad I would turn on our shower on “Hot” and close the shower curtain. After allowing the bathroom to fill with steam, I would bring the baby into the bathroom (but not into the shower) and sit on the toilet seat holding him. The steam in the bathroom would help loosen some of the mucus and aid him in producing more productive coughs. 

Putting pillows under the baby’s mattress to prop up his head. Elevating the baby helps any mucus drain and sinuses clear. I would often stack pillows beneath his mattress (but not in the crib due to the suffocation hazard) to keep his head elevated. Or I would simply sit on the couch holding him so he would be comforted and elevated at the same time. 

You can also try a variety of natural remedies for night cough relief.

These all natural cold remedies from Five Spot Green Living uses traditional indian remedies, like teas and gooseberries. 

An all natural homemade  cough syrup you can make for your kids would be an alternative to try before resorting to medication.

 

Cough Remedies for Toddlers at Night

Toddlers are a picky bunch. They are also at an age where they are expressing their opinions and learning independence. That’s why I like to try things that taste good or look cute with this age group specifically. 

• Pineapple juice, pineapple fruit chunks, dehydrated pineapple are all sweet and tasty natural remedies that help stop coughing. I use my pineapple popsicle recipe for soothing irritated throats. And when the pediatrician finds medication necessary, I use the same popsicle recipe to get my kids to take their medicine without a fight! 

Related: The One Toddler Medicine Hack You Need to Know STAT

• For toddlers that enjoy baths, a nice warm bubble bath with some mentholated bath wash may be a good idea.

I make DIY Copycat Vicks Shower tabs to add to a shower or bath water using eucalyptus and myrtle essential oils.

There are also great over the counter natural cough remedies available these days:

Now that more people are leaning towards non-toxic and natural ways to maintain their families health and wellness, more products are becoming available with that goal in mind. This is great for annoyances like late night coughing fits. 

The following are my personal favorite products that offer relief from night time cough. The night light that my kids use that doubles as a ionizer. These honey lollipops are a favorite among my readers so I am trying them! Honey Pops soothe throats that are sore from coughing.

But the one product I tell every one of my friends about when they have a virus running rampant in their home is Sambucol. These gummies or tabs are made from the Elderberry bush and are a natural antiviral. I cannot tell you how many viruses have been cut short since we started keeping these in stock at all times.

Don’t believe me? Check out my Instagram Story!

What works best to get rid of your kids cough?

I’m a mom but not a doctor. In the video below a pediatrician shares his favorite natural congestion home remedies.

 

I would love to hear which cough remedies for kids at night work best for you and if you have any suggestions! Let me know and don’t forget to pin this post so you have these tips on hand for your child’s next night time cough.

Want to keep track of your child’s health? Grab this sick kid printable set for your family binder!