First, Pin this homemade cough syrup recipe for later so you don’t forget!
This post may contain affiliate links. See full disclosure page here. Your support is much appreciated and helps keep this site running. Thank you for being here!
Is everyone in your house coughing up their lungs? No just mine? It’s been a rough year for colds and allergies in my household. I feel like everyone is catching up and paying their viral debt for 2 years of everything being over sanitized and sterilized, but that’s a different rant. I’ve made herbal honey concoctions like this cough syrup more times than I can count now, and it’s truly a relief. I can’t remember the last time I bought cough syrup over the counter. The bonus is it actually tastes good and you won’t have to hold your nose to choke it down or fight with your kids to take it.
Why Make Your Own Cough Syrup?
For starters, most cough medicines from the store taste absolutely awful and my kids would never take them. Also they usually can’t be given to children under 5 anyway. Besides all of that, I’ve never found cough medicines like dextromethorphan, the active ingredient in Robotussin, to work very well on myself. Not only that but it had weird side effects and made me feel even worse. I’ve seen studies showing that most OTC cough and cold ingredients are actually no better than placebo. I know some people might be skeptical but give homemade a try. Chances are if you landed here it’s because you also don’t have much luck with the usual medicines and are looking for something else.
Herbs Needed for Homemade Cough Syrup
Some of the ingredients in my homemade cough syrup include rose hips which are loaded with vitamin C. Thyme is antibacterial and can help open up sinuses and the respiratory tract. Mullein leaf is also used for respiratory support and my go-to plant for coughs. Sage is another anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial. It’s also an expectorant which means it helps break up and expel mucous.
All of these combined are perfect to fight respiratory and sinus issues whether from a virus, allergies, or just irritation from pollution. If you can’t get ahold of every herb in this recipe, it’s worth even using just one or two of them.
Benefits of Raw Honey
Raw honey contains antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, it’s an anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and some studies suggest it can help heal wounds. Raw honey contains hydrogen peroxide and has a naturally low PH so it can kill harmful microbes. Because of these properties it’s both soothing on the throat and will help combat what’s making you ill in the first place. I think I read somewhere that honey is so antimicrobial that it basically will last indefinitely and never spoil. It’s quite amazing stuff. Babies under 1 year should never consume raw honey due to possible botulism spores.
Raw local honey is also helpful with pollen allergies. It’s like getting a micro dose of local pollen each time you consume it. The hope is that when you’re exposed to large amounts later on then your body won’t react as badly. Basically you should be eating a little bit of it frequently year round so by the time spring rolls around the onslaught of pollen doesn’t murder you. Yes that’s my scientific explanation. If you haven’t been doing that it’s ok, we haven’t either. You can start now and there are still plenty of benefits.
Where to Get Herbs and Local Honey
Depending where you live, raw local honey is usually fairly easy to find. Support your local beekeepers! If you’re in a city usually a specialty store with natural groceries will have it. There is also a commercial company called Local Hive that bottles local honey from regions across the US. I was able to find the New England version at the grocery store. You can order it on Amazon. If you can’t find any local honey at the very least you will want to use raw honey. Pasteurization pretty much annihilates all the good stuff.
You have probably seen thyme and sage in most grocery stores or have it on hand already. If it’s been sitting in your cabinet or on a shelf for a long time it might not be that effective though. You can find mullein wild, but if you don’t have it kicking around your backyard check a local apothecary, health food store, or buy online. I consider it a staple so it’s worth ordering some dried to keep on hand. I mostly grow or forage my own for the most part, but shop from Starwest Botanicals and Mountain Rose Herbs when needed.
Ready to Make Homemade Cough Syrup?
This is basically a mashup of various concoctions I’ve made before, some in the book Raised Naturally which has tons of great herbal recipes for children. I’ve done a lot of experimenting with homemade cough syrup and tweaked this recipe to my liking.
The herbs need to steep for at least a few hours, but the longer the better. It’s easiest to just do it in the morning and let it sit all day while you’re out and about, or do it before bed so it can steep overnight. If you’re short on time, anything is better than nothing. You don’t have to stand over a stove all day.
Make sure you use a squeaky clean jar or bottle for your syrup, and store it in the refrigerator. It will stay good for about a month. I hope this helps your cough, it certainly does mine!
Looking for other recipes to help coughs and sniffles? Try my elderberry syrup recipe. Sometimes I combine the two for one powerhouse cough syrup and immune system booster.
References:
- Raised Naturally: A Parent’s Guide to Herbal Medicine From Newborn to Adolescence Step by Step (Herbology for Beginners)
- Herbal Medicine: 190 Herbs To Know And Use
Homemade Cough Syrup with Honey and Herbs
Equipment
- 1 small saucepan
- 1 fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth
- 1 glass jar
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp rosehips dried and crushed
- 1 tbsp thyme dried and chopped
- 1 tbsp mullein dried and chopped
- 1 tbsp sage dried and chopped
- 1 cup honey raw
- 2 1/4 cups water
Instructions
- Bring water to a boil in a small sauce pan.
- Once boiling, remove 1/4 cup of the water and pour it into a jar.
- Add the rosehips to the jar, cover tightly with lid, and shake well. Let it steep for at least 3 hours.
- Meanwhile keep the saucepan with remaining water over very low heat and add the thyme, mullein, and sage. Simmer the herbs while stirring occasionally until liquid is reduced by half.
- Remove the pan from heat and let everything steep for 8 hours.
- Strain the herbs with a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth into a jar.
- Add the raw honey and shake until very well blended. It will mix easier if the liquid is still warm.
Amazing! This blog looks just like my old one! It’s on a totally different subject but it has pretty
much the same layout and design. Wonderful choice of colors!
How funny! What was your blog? I used the Elsie theme. I want to play around with it more but I like it simple. I’ve never used wordpress before this so it’s all new to me. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Good day! I just want to give you a big thumbs up for your excellent information you have here on this post. I am coming back to your web site for more soon.
Thank you for the recipe. I hate medicine and am always looking for ways to naturally feel better.
I’m with you there! Thanks for visiting.
This is an interesting home remedy. Thanks for sharing the health benefits of the herbs. I use thyme a lot, good to be reminded of its antimicrobial properties.
What a great recipe. Thanks for sharing.