Cough turned out to be one of the defense system to remove foreign objects from the body. Cough due to certain stimuli, such as dust on cough receptor, then receptor will flow through the nerves to the cough center in the brain. Here will give signals to the muscles of the body to remove foreign objects before, until there was a cough. But, of course, there is also a cough that is a symptom of serious illness.
Cough occurred in the airways, which is divided into upper airway and lower airway. When there is disturbance in the upper airway, the body will form a defense mechanism by sneezing or coughing. While interference with the lower respiratory tract usually will make the body do with the cough reflex.
Cough can be classified into five types, namely: whooping cough, cough, tightness, dry cough, cough productive or wet cough, and cough bronchiolitis.
Based on the time of the suffered, cough can be divided into two types, namely:
- Acute cough is a cough that lasts less than 14 days, and in 1 episode.
- Chronic cough or recurrent chronic cough is a cough that lasts more than 14 days or occurred in 3 episodes during 3 months in a row. Recurrent chronic cough that often affects children is because of asthma, tuberculosis (TB), and pertussis. Pertussis is a chronic cough caused by the bacteria Bordetella pertussis.
Some medicinal plants that can be used to overcome cough were: betel (Piper betle L.), ginger (Zingiber officinale Rosc.), kencur (Kaempferia galanga L.), mandarin orange (Citrus nobilis Lour.), paniculata (Andrographis paniculata Nees. ), gotu kola (Centella asiatica Urb.), sage leaves (Abrus precatorius L.), lily bulbs (Lilium sp.), leaves of Mentha (Mentha sp), and lime (Citrus aurantifolia Swingle.).
This plant is used to help overcome the cough because it is warm and has the effect / efficacy relieve cough (antitussive), shed the sputum (expectorant), fever (antipyretic), anti-infective, anti-inflammatory, and stimulates immunity / immune system (immunostimulatory).
For cough with phlegm, cough, colds, flu, and throat, can be used 10 grams of ginger, 10 grams of dried mandarin orange peel, 10 grams of leaves of Mentha, 20 grams kencur, washed and sliced, boiled with 400 cc of water to the remaining 200 cc, after warm filtered water add lime juice and honey, then drink.
Ginger has a content of volatile oil, resin, mineral sineol, fellandren, camphor, borneol, zingiberin, zingiberol, gigerol, zingeron, lipidas, amino acid, niacin, vitamin A, B1, C and protein. Ginger warms efficacious respiratory, sputum laxative, anti-inflammatory. For coughs due to colds, flu and colds.
Citrus reticulata peels have a variety of compounds including tangeraxanthin, tangeritin, terpinen-4-ol, terpineolene, tetradecanal, threonine, thymol, thymyl-methyl-ether, tryptophan, tyrosine, cis-3-hexenol, cis-carveol, citric-acid , citronellal, citronellic-acid, citronellyl-acetate, cystine, decanal,-decanoic acid, decanol, and nobiletin (CCRC PHARMACY UGM).While the properties are expectorant and anti-asthma.
The main content of leaves of Mentha is menthol, menton and mentil acetate efficacious as antitussive and expectorant.
Content of substances contained in kencur namely: alcohol, oil-laden attrition sineol, camphor, minerals, starch, and gums. Kencur efficacious antitussive and expectorant.
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