Guava or amrood is a fruit with health benefits that are not unknown. Guava has been a fruit popular for dealing with stomach problems like constipation and gastric issues. But my mother, who loves her desi nuskhas, told me that this beloved fruit is also capable of curing chronic cough and providing relief from cold! Yes, you heard that right. Having roasted guava for cough and cold is a home remedy that has many scientific claims as well. Let’s take a look at how roasted guava can help in curing cough.

The winter season is here and so is the time for cold and cough. Several people can be found coughing these days and so was my grandfather a few weeks ago. He developed a really bad cough which was not getting curedd even after trying all sorts of medicines or home remedies like ginger tea, tulsi or honey. That is when my mom suggested giving him a roasted guava, which she had heard can cure chronic coughs. We gave my grandfather roasted guava for three days, after which his cough started to subside. He had less bouts of cough and eventually it went away completely in a week’s time!

How can roasted guava cure cough?

Amazed by this effect,  wanted to find out how this worked, so I got in touch with nutritionist, Avni Kaul who vouched for the health benefits of roasted guava. According to the expert, roasted guava can be quite useful in getting rid of chronic coughs as guava is high in vitamin C and the astringent properties of guava help loosen the mucus and inhibit microbial causing cough and cold.

According to a 2018 study published by ResearchGate, roasted guava as well as guava leaves have been found to be effective in curing cold and cough. The study claims that guava is a rich source of ascorbic acid and iron by virtue of which it reduces lung congestion and mucus formation and at the same time guava also keeps the respiratory tract free of any unfriendly pathogens. Reports claimed that these components in guava act like a miracle in curing influenza14 as well.

The study states: Vitamin C is present in good concentration in guava which has been found to be very effective in treating colds and coughs associated with bacteria or viruses.

How to eat guava for cough?

Take a raw guava (make sure you take a raw guava only as that is more effective), slice it into two halves, apply some rock salt to the slices and then roast it on the stove like we do with brinjal to make baingan ka bharta. Once it is roasted and gets a little charred, you can feed it to the person who is suffering from a cough. Have them eat this for 3-4 days at least or even more as there is no harm in having it everyday as well.

So, give this home remedy of eating roasted guava for cough a try and for sure you will get relief from all the coughing!