Coughs are troublesome and often painful. Whether it is a mere tickle in the throat or a hacking cough, they are uncomfortable. Thankfully, there are home made remedies that can help with coughing.

It may be surprising to some, but there are still people who think that purchasing something from a store, meant for congestion or coughs, and used in a certain way, is a home made remedy.

It isn't. Home made means 'make your own'. Thankfully, Mother Nature has provided for an abundance of ways to do this, without needing to buy man made and store bought ingredients. Let's look at some of these.

Wild Cherry

Wild cherry is such a good cough suppressant that it is often used in over the counter products. The inner bark can be made into a great cough remedy at home, though. To do this, pour 1 pint of boiling water over 1 cup of inner bark. Cover and allow the tea to completely cool. Sweeten the mixture with honey for a great homemade cough syrup. Any cherry will work, but wild cherries such as chokecherries have a stronger action. The flavor is also surprisingly good.

Wild cherry can also be used in tincture form, which is correspondingly stronger. For tinctures, the inner bark including that from roots is placed in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Enough vodka or similar drinking alcohol is added to cover the bark and the jar is capped. The mixture is shaken 3 times a day for 1-2 weeks. The bark is then strained out of the tincture.

Honey can be added to both sweeten and thicken the mixture.

Eucalyptus

Eucalyptus, especially the leaves, produces a good expectorant. The green leaves, chopped, can be added to the reservoir of a humidifier. The leaves can also be made into a suitable salve for rubbing on the chest, back, and neck. The salve can be made by gently heating a cup of lard or petroleum jelly until it is liquid. Add 1/2 cup chopped eucalyptus leaves and allow the mixture to remain over heat for a half hour, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat and strain the leaves out, allowing the liquid to cool until it is again solid. This salve can be used in the same way that commercial products such as Vick's or Mentholatum are used.

Mint

Mint has a warming effect and many people find the vapor good for alleviating coughs. It can also be made into a satisfying salve using the same steps as used for eucalyptus, and the salve is also a good substitute for the store bought products previously mentioned. Mint leaves can also be placed inside a pillow to ease sleeping by

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