Honey (Miel)
If you come down with a cold in Spain or Latin America, your host will most likely serve you up a pile of garlic and a hot cup of lemon honey tea. Dubbed the “Spanish cure,” honey has been a cure for coughs for generations. It seems as though modern medicine has finally caught up.
A recent research study showed that children who were given a dose of honey coughed less and slept better than those who took cough medicine with dextromethorphan (DM), the most-common drug in over-the-counter cough medicines like Robitussin or Delsym. What’s more, the kids who took honey instead of the over-the-counter treatments had none of the negative side effects associated with the drugs, such as dizziness or sleepiness.
The reason behind its effectiveness is two-pronged: First, the stickiness and viscosity of honey act as a great soother for irritated mucous membranes, making coughing less likely. Second, honey contains a bee-produced enzyme that causes nectar to produce hydrogen peroxide, an antibacterial agent that can combat certain respiratory illnesses.
But be careful. Doctors advise parents never to give children younger than 1 year old honey under any circumstances because of the risk of botulism, or small sores that develop in a child’s mouth because of honey’s natural ingredients. As children get older, their immune systems can fight off the potential infection.
