To relieve coughs caused by viral or bacterial infections, you can use special foot baths. You can soar your limbs in plain water or with the addition of various medicinal components. Let's take a closer look at this ancient method of treating colds.
Mechanism of action
Floating your feet when coughing is very helpful. Hot water stimulates blood circulation and dilates blood vessels in the extremities. This causes blood to flow from the upper body to the lower body. Consequently, the swelling of the airways is reduced, and inflammation is eliminated. It is easier for the patient to breathe, he feels relief already a few minutes after the start of the procedure.
In addition, foot baths help to loosen phlegm in the lungs and actively fight the common cold. By following all of the guidelines below on a regular basis, you can quickly get rid of colds and flu. By stimulating blood flow, the body's protective functions are enhanced, it copes more effectively with infections. The metabolism at the cellular level is also accelerated, which has a positive effect on recovery.
Soar feet correctly
Specialists at burn centers are skeptical about steaming legs, as they often encounter patients who scald their limbs. This is due to an elementary non-observance of the rules of treatment, because in order to obtain a good result, the procedure must be performed strictly according to the instructions. We will perform the following actions step by step:
- Preparing a container for steaming. It is best to do soaking in a deep dish that retains heat for a long time. Warming up the calf muscles will help to achieve good results and enhance the therapeutic effect of the procedure. You can take a bucket made of thick plastic or porcelain, these materials do not cool down quickly, unlike aluminum and enameled counterparts. When the dishes that are suitable for the depth are ready, they need to be washed well with soda and rinsed with running water.
We heat the water. Many people refuse warm baths because they feel discomfort when in contact with hot water. In order not to scald and not to cause vasospasm instead of their expansion, at the beginning of the procedure, you need to use a liquid with a temperature of 37-38 ᵒС, no more.- Add hot water. Before starting the procedure, you need to put a container of hot water next to you, ideally if it is a kettle. When the skin gets used to the high temperature and the muscles relax, you need to top up with warm water. Dilute the bath periodically, focusing on your feelings, such therapy should in no case cause discomfort.
- We consolidate the result. You can carry out the procedure for no more than half an hour, after that we rinse our feet with warm clean water, if desired, we smear our feet with cream, put on warm socks and lie down under the blanket. For 2 hours, the patient should not go out into the cold, it is best if the vaping is carried out before bedtime, so that the patient can sweat properly.
We heat the water. Many people refuse warm baths because they feel discomfort when in contact with hot water. In order not to scald and not to cause vasospasm instead of their expansion, at the beginning of the procedure, you need to use a liquid with a temperature of 37-38 ᵒС, no more.Useful Supplements
Most often, the legs just float in warm water, this in itself is useful for bronchospasm. However, you can use medicinal impurities that will help enhance the therapeutic effect of the procedure.
You can use these products to enhance the therapeutic effect:
Mustard powder. The bath is prepared at the rate of: 1 tablespoon per 1 liter of water. The tool has a wonderful warming effect, but it has its own characteristics. The vapors irritate the mucous membranes, so you cannot wrap yourself in a blanket during the procedure. If you are using clean water or other additives, cover with a blanket.- Soda. It will be useful to add a tablespoon of baking soda to the bath if the patient is tormented by bouts of dry cough. Sodium carbonate enhances the expansion of peripheral vessels, this significantly accelerates blood circulation. In addition, the patient will inhale vapors of alkaline ions, they contribute to the dilution of sputum and its rapid removal from the respiratory tract.
- Essential oils. All oils that are used for cough relief can be added to the water during this procedure. They are perfectly absorbed into the skin, but this is not their most important feature. The therapeutic effect is that the patient will simultaneously soar his legs and inhale vapors of medicinal oils, conducting a kind of inhalation that is beneficial for the respiratory tract. Best of all, in this case, medicines made from eucalyptus, cedar, fir, lavender, spruce, etc. are suitable.
- Healing decoctions. If you do not have essential oils on hand or if you are afraid of oil pneumonia, you can use medicinal decoctions. Chamomile, sage, St. John's wort, calendula, lavender and other herbs are great for making warm baths.
Mustard powder. The bath is prepared at the rate of: 1 tablespoon per 1 liter of water. The tool has a wonderful warming effect, but it has its own characteristics. The vapors irritate the mucous membranes, so you cannot wrap yourself in a blanket during the procedure. If you are using clean water or other additives, cover with a blanket.Precautionary measures
There are situations in which such a simple and seemingly painless procedure as a foot bath can be absolutely contraindicated. Most often, a ban on the use of this method is imposed due to the high temperature of the water, because it provokes complications of some diseases.
You can not be treated in this way in such cases:
- children's age up to 1 year;
- pregnancy and lactation;
- cardiovascular diseases;
- increased body temperature;
- violation of the integrity of the skin on the legs;
- allergic reactions to the components of the baths.
It should be noted that women during menstruation also cannot perform this wellness procedure, since it activates peripheral blood flow and can cause bleeding.
About the use of trays for hypertension, you should consult your doctor. Steaming the limbs will relieve pressure for a while, but then it will increase even more, so the described treatment method should be used with extreme caution.
The effectiveness of the procedures
It is best to start taking baths at a time when the disease is just developing. In some cases, when bronchospasm is caused by banal hypothermia, the development of serious complications can be prevented using this simple procedure. However, if the patient is tormented by severe coughing attacks, steaming the limbs can only be used as an additional measure, combined with drug therapy.
Feet can be soared no more than 3 times a day. It is advisable to do this in the morning and before bedtime. The duration of treatment depends on the neglect of the disease and the characteristics of the patient's body.
When the symptoms of the disease recede, it is advisable to take warm baths for a couple of days in order to consolidate the results obtained.
The procedure will not have a positive effect if the following diseases are the cause of the cough:
- allergy;
- violation of the pumping function of the heart;
- malfunctions of the gastrointestinal tract;
- oncology;
- ingress of foreign bodies into the respiratory tract;
- chemical irritation of the mucous membranes;
- psychoemotional disorders.
In conclusion
Steaming the limbs can give excellent results in treating viral or bacterial coughs. The procedure can be done only on the recommendation of a doctor. Baths have a tangible effect and are not harmful to health if they are used exactly in accordance with the instructions. Choose only safe therapy and always seek medical attention from specialists.
