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Kristina Wagstaff
Based on The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Healing Remedies, peppermint is an expectorant. But google also says its an astringent; is this true? I can see how both properties of the herb could be beneficial in drying up and expelling coughs, but don’t those two properties counteract each other? Expectorants expel via stimulation of the cilia, while astringents dry things up. I also know that dry and wet coughs should be treated differently. The question is: can expectorants and astringents be most beneficial for a cough, and if so, a dry or wet one or both?
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Kelly Clemmer
Interesting question. I know some other things seem to have conflicting actions but typically one is a much stronger action. The one that comes to mind is Mullein as both a cough suppressant (antispasmodic) and reportedly as a more mild expectorant (it also lists astringent properties as well as demulcent, which don’t seem to go together either). I don’t have an answer except maybe to think through how intense the herbal action is OR the application/parts used (roots vs. flowers vs. leaves in the case of mullein?).
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