Tag: coughs

These windpipe cells trigger coughs to keep water out of the lungs

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Have you ever taken a gulp of water that goes down the wrong way? Or felt acid reflux bubbling up? It feels like your windpipe seizes up and you quickly emit a cough or maybe three.

Researchers now know which cells are responsible for that quick reaction. Neuroendocrine cells in the larynx and trachea, which make up the passageway from the mouth to the lungs, can sense water and acid passing through, a team reports in the April 19  Science

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Why are so many of us falling sick with ‘winter’ colds, coughs and stomach bugs this summer?

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Colleagues are dropping like flies and every time you step on public transport at the moment you are met by a chorus of coughs.

It’s not just anecdotal, either. GP surgeries and hospitals are recording higher than usual levels of patients with colds and stomach bugs that normally don’t rear their ugly heads until the depths of winter.

What makes it even more unusual is that the UK is enjoying one of its hottest summers on record.

Much was made

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