What Causes A Throat Cough? 

Sometimes the causes of a chronic throat cough are obvious. You have a throat infection, sore throat or some kind of respiratory issue that constantly causes a "tickle" in your throat. Sometimes, if you have a cold, the flu, bronchitis or pneumonia, congestion in your lungs can cause a chronic cough that make your throat raw - and cause more coughing.

In this article, we'll focus on figuring out why you might have a throat cough that has started recently, but just won't seem to go away. Causes of such throat coughs are not always obvious.

Keep in mind, a cough is not usually a disease itself: it's a symptom of a disease or condition - a sign that something is wrong somewhere, and it may not even be in your throat.

Also, make a distinction between a wet, "productive" cough that usually comes with a cold or the flu, and a dry cough that produces no mucus or phlegm. A dry cough is usually a sign of a long term respiratory condition that needs a doctor's attention.

Causes of a throat cough Prolonged cigarette smoking, often called a "smoker's cough" is the most common cause of a chronic cough. If you have smoked for years (sometimes it doesn't even take years), your throat and lungs have been subjected to a pollutant. It's a pollutant that gives you pleasure, and that's really hard to give up once you've started. But it's been scientific fact for more than a half century that smoking can cause a throat cough and a lot of other respiratory problems, including lung cancer. For more information, read our article on smoker's cough.

Asthma and allergies also cause millions of cases of sore throat coughing. Besides the cough, there may be wheezing and difficulty breathing. Many people have allergies which make them sensitive to air pollutants, pollen, smoke, or even perfume. An allergist can test you to see if any of these are triggering your throat cough.

Acid reflux Sometimes you'll burp and suddenly you'll feel a raw spot in your throat which causes you to start coughing. When this happens, it's usually because some potent stomach acid "erupted" out of your stomach and up into your windpipe when you burped. The lining of the esophagus isn't nearly as tough as the lining of your stomach, so the acid causes a raw spot that makes you cough. Many people call this condition "heartburn."

Acid reflux or heartburn is generally temporary, unless you have a condition called gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD. This is a chronic situation that allows stomach acid to creep up into your esophagus on a regular basis. GERD requires medical attention and treatment. It is more common in older people.

Postnasal drip and sinus problems When your sinuses produce excess mucus, the mucus can "drip" down into your throat, accumulate there, a cause a tickle that triggers a cough. This process is called postnasal drip or PND. Typical causes of postnasal drip include rhinitis, sinusitis, laryngopharyngeal acid reflux, and allergies.

Birth control pills or pregnancy can also cause post-nasal drip

Certain medications may cause a chronic throat cough. This is especially true of blood pressure medications in the ACE inhibitor category.

To browse popular throat cough remedies, click here.