Cough medicine or lemon and honey – which one dey beta for you?

Na dat time of di year wen virus wey dey give cough dey households, office and public transport.

Many pipo dey run go buy cough medicine to fix am. But e dey work, or shey homemade remedies like honey and lemon dey good too?

Jacky Smith, one professor for respiratory medicine for University of Manchester, speak to Radio 4 Sliced Bread to unblock fact from fiction.

Paying more for big names worth am?

Most times wen you dey cough, na from cold e dey come, and cold virus usually need to do dia own tin for your body. Cough medicine no fit treat di virus wey dey cause di cold, but e fit make your throat feel beta and reduce di tickly sensation wey dey make you cough.

If na dry cough den choosing balsam or sweet syrup medicine like glycerol, to help 'coat your throat' and protect against di dryness fit help, Prof Smith tok.

But paying more for dis no dey worth am wit cheaper supermarket-own brands just as effective as di big names, she tok.

Di one tin to look out for on di label though na sugar content wey dey inside, becos as you know say e be sweet syrup, sugar dey plenty. Sugar-free cough medicines fit be beta option if dat na concern.

Many cough medicine dem dey advertise dey dey contain 'active ingredients.' Dis fit include dextromethorphan, wey dem dey claim say e dey suppress your cough refex – but Prof Smith say e get minimal impact.

Dosing dey important she add, but especially wit dextromethorphan wey fit make you dey addicted. "You certainly no suppose exceed di doses advised on di label," she tok.

Levomenthol – na one ingredient wey dey inside some cough syrup for chest cough – e dey offer"cooling sensation" at di back of di throat, wey dey reduce di tickle by hiding di sense of irritation.

Drink water and wait for am to pass

If na chest cough dey worry person, many pipo dey fight as if dem dey inside ocean of phlegm, tight chest.

Dis fit come from secondary infection like bronchitis, wey dey make airway swell, or wen plenty phlegm dey build-up for your nose and sinuses.

E dey normal to turn to ova-di-counter syrup, but Prof Smith dey advise make we remain sceptical of dia impact.

Di ingredient like guaifenesin, for instance, claim to dey loosen phlegm, but e lack conclusive proof.

And while sedating antihistamines like diphenhydramine fit help you sleep for night, dem no dey treat di cough.

E no too dey show say plant extracts like thyme and squill dey work.

Instead, Prof Smith tok say di best approach na for pipo to "wait for am to pass," drink water to stay hydrated and take lozenges wey dey encourage swallowing and "sto cough" for some time.

What about honey and lemon?

Dat warm homemade mixture of honey and lemon fit do di same work wey get soothing effect for dry cough as many ova-di-counter options.

Cochrane review - one independent review of evidence- suggest say for children ova one year wit coughs and colds, di use of honey and lemon fit "be of some benefit," Prof Smith tok.

Cough am out

E good make we remember say coughing dey important. Na how body dey comot dirty tins like mucus.

If na cough mucus dey, make you spit am out so your clear di airways.

"I go cough out whatever I need to cough out," Prof Smith tok. "I no go try and hold am, get am out." If you do, make sure you use tissue.

But if you swallow am, no harm dey, and di stomach fit still break am down.

You only need to worry about di color of wetin you dey cough out if e dey dark as brown as "e fit be say blood dey inside."

Most chest cough dey go afta some weeks without needing medicine, but if e stay pass three weeks, Prof Smith urge pipo to go see dia GP.