Grandma’s Homemade Cough Syrup
Homemade cough syrup with just 3 simple ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry. Great for 12 months old to adult!
So, I’ve done a few posts on natural cold remedies recently. Homemade vapor rub & shower soothers. You should be able to tell now that this time of the year is the worst on my family’s sinuses.
In any cold fighting arsenal, you need something to treat that cough. So, I wanted to share with you my Great Grandma’s homemade cough syrup. She used it on all of her kids, grand-kids, and on me…and now I make it myself. It’s so-so-so simple with just 3 all-natural cough busting ingredients.
Olive Oil: Making a homemade cough syrup using olive oil will help you combat your cough as well as reduce reduce inflammation in the throat.
Honey: Honey helps with coughs, particularly buckwheat honey. In a study of 110 children, a single dose of buckwheat honey was just as effective as a single dose of dextromethorphan in relieving nocturnal cough and allowing proper sleep. You can use any type of honey you have on hand though.
Lemon: Because everyone knows that lemon & honey is the one of the best throat soother combinations.
Grandma's Homemade Cough Syrup
Ingredients
- ¾ cup raw organic honey
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 lemons - juiced
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a small bowl & whisk to combine. Heat over low heat until steaming when ready to use. Remove from the heat & let it cool.
- Store it in a mason jar or other container with a tight fitting lid. Store it in the fridge for 3 months, or on the counter top for 1.5 months.
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If you add some onion to the mixture as you are simmering it, it will help alot, too. While it does alter the taste, onions have powerful anti-sickie properties. Also, when anyone in your household gets sick, chop up an onion, put in a bowl and set in general living area. The onion will attract all the germs, etc. to itself and help clean the air. My family and friends swear by this trick.
I would have never thought of that – thanks so much for the suggestion! 🙂
I’ve read about that..glad to hear others have used it & it works :-0
Raw chopped onion and honey is the key. Leaving it in the fridge for a few days and longer draws out the healing of onions.
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Do not give anything with honey in it to children under 3 years of age, it causes botulism in the intestines of young toddlers and infants. Also Yes Morticia, onion in Very, very good, and even if the kids hate onions they will love the flavor of the mixture but don’t chop them up cook them quartered and remove the solids that are left from them. My son hated onions and still does, but can handle the syrup for the cough and cold.
By heating the mixture until steaming, you kill the bacteria that may cause botulism in the honey.
It can cause botulism not it does cause botulism.
Honey is not considered safe for children under one but at that age no medicine natural or not is for infants so honey over age 1 is not going to cause botulism we have an all natural honey children’s cough syrup store brought that states so. Will definitely make this though that crap costs per $6 to buy.lol thanks for the recipe
is it the honey in any form or is it the honey alone that causes problems cuz it coats the throat ?
My grandmother would boil the onion put the onion on a saucer and put a coffee cup over the onion. then she would put honey in the saucer. the onion would then seep into the honey and that’s what i would be given for cough medicine. she was a nurse and my uncle was a doctor and the entire family used this when we had colds !
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is this safe for baby age 1 year and 9months old???
No. Honey is not safe for children until the age of two due to the bacteria in it. Molasses can be a suitable substitute though.
Yes. You can give honey after the age one to a child.
Yes, as long as your child is not under the age of 1, it’s safe. But if you’re really worried about it, always consult your pedi and follow what they say.
Yes, it is safe. It is used in Europe for centuries.
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how long does the cough medicine last before you can not use it any more
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Thanks for sharing, It’s pinned on my board 🙂
-Meg, http://www.willwork4cupcakes.blogspot.com
they do make pasteurized honey, would that not kill any bacteria?
No, it’s not the same. Pasteurization kills off all existing bacterias. Raw honey has the beneficial properties that you need, if using honey for health purposes…
I added cinnamon because its known to be a natural antibiotic and some vanilla extract becauwe its an anti flamitory for the soar throats
how much cinnamon and vanilla extract did you put?
Why do you recommend evoo over just olive oil? Curious since you are cooking it anyway and I’m thinking it’ll lose it’s cold press properties from heating anyway. Plus it’s more expensive.
if you dont mind care about taste, add 1 tsp ginger and 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper(or less if you cant handle the heat but it’s an expectorant so deal with it)
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an elderly neighbour passed on her mother’s cough rememdy, I have used it a few times when my kids were little (they now in late twenties), it is very simple….. peel and cut onion in half. sit on a plate cut side down, sprinkle with 1 tsp brown sugar and microwave approx 1minute. the onion juice mixes with the sugar. squeeze as much juice as possible out of the onion into a medicine cup (i used to get approx 10 – 20 ml. let it cool and drink it. One of my girls had bad croup one night and this stopped it in its tracks!!!! safe and natural remedy.
Wow! That’s amazing. Thanks for sharing I’m going to try this. My son is 17 months old with a cold and cough. I’ll see if this works.
Did it work?
yep, he’s now in his 20’s
It’s good cough syrup, but it makes you age really fast. (Sorry, I couldn’t stop myself. lol)
We found a video for Grandma’s Cough Syrup and wrote a review! http://secrethealthremedies.com/homemade-cough-syrup-that-really-works/
What, no whiskey? My grandmother’s (and her aunt’s) cough syrup called for whiskey, not oil.
I don’t remember honey as a baby, but I know I teethed on whiskey and a silver spoon.
My grandma always made a cough syrup with whiskey, honey, lemon & horehound candy.
when my kids were young an old doctor talked me in to making cough syrup from black berry brandy and sugar next morning caught my son up drinking it saying this is the best cough syrup ever,he had already drank to much,from then on I kept it up so they could not get it
I thought when you heat honey it loses it bacterial potency….
My grandmother always heated it slightly, but if you have any concerns over this – you could always just not heat it and whisk it really well to combine.
As long as it doesn’t get above 110 F
It loses vitamins and enzymes. What is left is – sugar.
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Why store it? Why not use it right away?
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i use with slice of onion +few cups of honey [not with olive oil ]and wait untill the honey become more diluted in the riaction with the onion =halp in dry cough
few spoons not cups sorry
@Christy my gramma’s was wiskey lemon and honey no oil
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Just tried this and while it didn’t really help my cough but it did soothe my sore throat and it tastes amazing. I think the addition of whiskey would help my cough, alas I have none 😉
A little whiskey certainly wouldn’t hurt 😉 and it’ll surely work better than the useless cough syrups they sell at the store.
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Does antone know if this is safe for a 7 month baby im asking because of the honey would agave syrup be a safer option?
The agave syrup would not have the medicinal qualities of honey, but giving it to a 7 month old isn’t a good idea. Their immune systems usually aren’t developed enough to handle the possibility of botulism.
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can you lemon extract instead of lemon juice
Hmm, I’m really not sure. Grandma always used pure lemon juice. You could definitely try it, I don’t see where it would hurt.
I can remember as a child my mom would get a large onion, and bake it in the oven. When it was done she would squeeze and break up the onion and put the hot onion in a thin cloth and while still hot, put it on my chest, to break up congestion.
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Never heat the honey over 70 degrees celsius. It becomes toxic for the human body!
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Can I not heat this and it still work? I hear raw honey is better for you.
My Nana’s recipe….only difference is she made it in equal parts of everything and used glycerin instead of olive oil.
BYW she was born in the 1800’s (y)
our family recipe calls for glycerin
This is GREAT!! 🙂
How would you warm up a spoonfull though if kept in the fridge?
I was thinking this might actually be credible until I read you had to heat it – heating honey actually destroys the enzymes so that’s a waste of good honey. There is no reason at all that this needs to be heated, blending is quite sufficient.
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SuperTonic Formula
Potent Anti-Viral
This is the famous “anti-plague formula” popularized by Dr. Richard Schulze and Dr. John Christopher. People have sworn it is the cure for the common cold. The basic formula goes back to the plagues of medieval Europe. It is a broad spectrum antibiotic, destroying both gram positive and gram negative bacteria, a potent antiviral and antifungal. It will increase blood circulation to every cell.
Supertonic is a potent tincture which is very simple and easy to make at home in your kitchen. A tincture is a liquid extract where fluid is used to extract and concentrate the medicinal properties of plants. The most common substances used for extracting these properties are: 1. Apple Cider Vinegar and 2. Vodka (vodka
by law can only contain ethyl alcohol and water).
Formula:
Fresh Juices of Horseradish Root, Garlic Bulb, Onion Bulb, Ginger Root, and Cayenne Peppers in a base of Raw Unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar.
Dosage: At the first sign of flu, cold, or other malaise take 2 tablespoons every 2 hours until recovered. Have a small cup of purified water (distilled is best) handy to chase the mixture. It’s quite hot and very tasty. You can use it as the base for a delicious salad dressing. Another way to take it: 2-10 dropperfuls (7–350 drops) – gargle and swallow. In this form use 1 to 5 times daily, as needed.
How to Prepare:
1. Obtain 8 or 10 Mexican Habanero peppers from a local Mexican Market, supermarket, or farmer’s market. A mix of Jalapenos, serranos or other hot peppers from Asian or Mexican markets
will do, but habaneros are the hottest, and, therefore, in my opinion the best source of cayenne for this tonic. Take the tops off the peppers and drop them in the blender.
2. Add a full handful of Fresh Ginger Root.
3. Add one full bulb of Fresh Garlic – a large one. Leave the skins on.
4. Add one whole White Onion (cut in quarters).
5. Slice up a large piece (one inch or so) of Fresh Horseradish Root (many markets carry it) and drop in.
6. Pour in a quantity of Raw Unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar that amounts to a little less than half the volume of the herbs. Buy either Spectrum Naturals or Bragg’s raw unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar from your local health food store.
7. Blend and add more Apple Cider Vinegar as needed. Don’t skimp or be frugal with the herbs. Use plenty. When the blended mix settles the Apple Cider Vinegar should cover the top of the herbs by about 1/4 of the total volume. You don’t want more than the top 1/4 to be just liquid.
8. Pour into a canning jar and set out in a place where you will have to walk by it daily. Shake it up thoroughly each day. Do not keep in direct sunlight. Allow at least 14 days for the extraction to take place. The longer you let a tincture brew the stronger and more effective it will be. Several months is not uncommon.
9. Strain the mix through unbleached cotton and discard the solids (got compost?). Label it Supertonic and keep it in your kitchen, medicine cabinet or fridge. It doesn’t have to be refrigerated but doing so will increase the shelf life. It should be good for at least a year. I suggest making up a gallon or two at once.
The use of this formula is not limited to times of illness. When you feel low or need an energy pick-up, take an ounce (a few dropperfuls) of it, gargle and swallow. It will make some changes. The Cayenne (habaneros or other peppers) goes to the heart first and moves the blood out. Ginger goes to the extremities first and brings it back. Horseradish moves everything up to the head. Fresh Raw Garlic is the greatest natural antibiotic in the plant kingdom. It also reduces hypertension, lowers blood pressure, serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and reduces the build-up of atherosclerotic plaque in the arteries. Apple Cider Vinegar, although considered acidic on its own, will alkalinize the blood and body when
eaten. The vast majority of illnesses and toxic conditions are acidic in nature.
Also called Fire Cider. Look it up on Mountain Rose Herbs blog. I have made it for the past two years, and it is awesome! I take 1 shot (literal, shot glasses from Goodwill just for this purpose) daily, and if I feel a bit off, I’ll take several throughout the day.
herbs??? what herbs?
Honey should NEVER be heated over 104 degrees! You will lose everything that honey is good for. And it must be (for the same reason) unpasteurized.
There is also an excellent, Dr. Rudolph Breuss recipe for bronchitis, cough (and asthma). Your liver and pancreas must be in a good shape: take 2 egg-size onions. Don’t peel it. Take 4 cups of water (1 l) and 0,2 lb (100 gr.) of brown sugar. Bring it to boil and simmer for 10-15 min. Cool and drink during the day, sipping. Works.
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So if honey isn’t good for babies under 1, what can I do for my 3 month year old? My daughter had had her cold for over a month now… I’m trying everything, well most things. Like vaporizing, keeping her warm… Now trying to find something different cause she’s not getting well at all
Add some Bourbon!
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If you are on here to dispute the properties of a homemade cough syrup why exactly are you on here? It just seems pointless to me. Home remedies are things passed down from generations of mothers and grandmothers before store medications were easily purchased. Picking apart the ingredients is just as I said pointless. If you want to get technical about it anything and everything you feed your children is said by someone to be “harmful” I could google banana baby food and find twenty articles about why it’s unsafe for children . Why complain about or try to discredit things simply shut up and move on.
The lemon also acts as a antibacterial in killing the bacteria in the throat and in the body that caused the cold in the first place. I’d take a natural remedy over an over the counter med. any day. I don’t know why more people don’t use a more natural approach. Actually I think it’s due to the easiness of. Just picking up some thing at the store and the commercials that have promoted them for such a long time. I think in the long run it’s just soooooo much better on children’s bodies and grow up without such chemicals in them. Of course if you have to give you kids meds. Or antibiotics then that is what is best but overall I think and know God has put things on this earth for our betterment if we would just find out what that is.
Thank you for sharing this wonderful and very simple recipe with us. God Bless you and your family.
Colloidal Silver is a natural antibiotic. We get ours thru Swanson Vit. You still have to replace the good bacteria with acidophilus but don’t take together, take one in the morning and the other at night.
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Add a little Fire Ball Wiskey and good to go. The cinimmon and the wiskey give it that little bit extra healing properties.
Sounds so much better than one I grew up on. It worked too, just left home smelling of onions & garlic. Mom would simmer chopped onion & garlic clove then add honey. Was great for coughs, sinuses etc.
Awesome cough syrup! I chased it with a little sip ( and really mean a ..little..sip of spiced rum and got the bronchial tube too. Could feel the difference immediately! The olive oil was wonderful. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Gonna have to go the long way ’round and try to get your nutrients from somewhere besides your cough syrup.
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Gave this to my 11 year old granddaughter that had a bad cough when she had come to spend the night. Almost instant relief for her. She said she could feel it working in her throat! She slept all night without coughing, and normally a cough like hers would have gotten worse when she laid down! Thanks for this awesome recipe!
Why do you use olive oil? For smooth swallowing?
It is an anti-inflammatory
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You can add one 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric to the mix. A pinch of curry masala powder will also be beneficial. Anything that makes you sweat a bit is beneficial (food grade)