Is an incessant cough keeping you up at night, causing you a tight chest, or causing mucus buildup? Seasonal allergies, the flu virus, or some kind of lung infection are the most common reasons for a nagging cough. However, a cough can sometimes indicate a more serious health condition, such as asthma. Whatever the reason for your hacking, a cough is the body’s typical reflex when foreign material is blocking the lungs and upper airway passages.
So, how do you determine one cough from another? Let’s take a look at why a cough occurs, and what the top common health conditions a cough indicates, depending on the associated symptoms of course. Fifteen common reasons behind that stubborn cough are…
1. Post Nasal Drip
Post-nasal drip (phlegm or mucus draining down the back of the throat from the sinus cavities) is a very common source of an itchy, scratchy cough that you’d get with seasonal allergies. Those with allergies, commonly experience post-nasal drip during periods of high pollen, such as ragweed season in the late summer/early fall.