Definition

By Mayo Clinic Staff

A cough is your body's way of responding when something irritates your throat or airways. An irritant stimulates nerves that send a message to your brain. The brain then tells muscles in your chest and stomach area to push air out of your lungs to force out the irritant.

A cough once in a while is common and healthy. A cough that lasts for several weeks or one that brings up discolored or bloody mucus may be a sign of a condition that needs medical attention.

At times, coughing can be very forceful. Strong coughing that lasts a long time can irritate the lungs and cause even more coughing. It also is very tiring and can cause sleeplessness, dizziness or fainting; headaches; leaking of urine; vomiting; and even broken ribs.

From Mayo Clinic to your inbox

Sign up for free and stay up to date on research advancements, health tips, current health topics, and expertise on managing health. Click here for an email preview.

We use the data you provide to deliver you the content you requested. To provide you with the most relevant and helpful information, we may combine your email and website data with other information we have about you. If you are a Mayo Clinic patient, we will only use your protected health information as outlined in our Notice of Privacy Practices. You may opt out of email communications at any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link in the email.

Dec. 11, 2024

See also

  1. Achalasia
  2. Acute bronchitis: Is it contagious?
  3. Acute sinusitis
  4. Acute sinusitis: Do over-the-counter treatments help?
  5. Adenocarcinoma: How this type of cancer affects prognosis
  6. Adjuvant therapy: Treatment to keep cancer from returning
  7. Albuterol side effects
  8. Allergies
  9. Allergy medications: Know your options
  10. Allergy-proof your home
  11. Alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency
  12. Aneurysms
  13. Aortic aneurysm
  14. Aortic surgery: What patients need to know — Mayo Clinic
  15. Asbestosis
  16. Ascariasis
  17. Asthma attack
  18. Asthma attack video
  19. Asthma: Limit asthma attacks caused by colds or flu
  20. Atelectasis
  21. Atypical cells: Are they cancer?
  22. Barrett's esophagus
  23. Barrett's Study Results
  24. Bile reflux
  25. Biopsy: Types of biopsy procedures used to diagnose cancer
  26. Bird flu (avian influenza)
  27. Blood tests for heart disease
  28. Bronchitis
  29. Can vitamins help prevent a heart attack?
  30. Cancer
  31. Cancer blood tests: Lab tests used in cancer diagnosis
  32. Cancer causes: Popular myths about the causes of cancer
  33. Cancer diagnosis: 11 tips for coping
  34. Cancer fatigue: Why it occurs and how to cope
  35. Cancer pain: Relief is possible
  36. Cancer risk: What the numbers mean
  37. Cancer surgery: Physically removing cancer
  38. Cancer survival rate: What it means for your prognosis
  39. Cancer survivors: Care for your body after treatment
  40. Cancer survivors: Late effects of cancer treatment
  41. Cancer survivors: Managing your emotions after cancer treatment
  42. Cardiac asthma: What causes it?
  43. Castleman disease
  44. Chelation therapy for heart disease: Does it work?
  45. Chemotherapy side effects: A cause of heart disease?
  46. Chronic sinusitis
  47. Churg-Strauss syndrome
  48. Cold and flu viruses: How long can they live outside the body?
  49. Cold or allergy: Which is it?
  50. Cold remedies: What works, what doesn't, what can't hurt
  51. Cold symptoms: Does drinking milk increase phlegm?
  52. Common cold
  53. Common cold in babies
  54. COPD
  55. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)
  56. Coronavirus infection by race
  57. COVID-19 and pets
  58. COVID-19 and vitamin D
  59. COVID-19 and your mental health
  60. COVID-19 drugs: Are there any that work?
  61. COVID-19 in babies and children
  62. COVID-19 travel advice
  63. COVID-19 vaccines for kids: What you need to know
  64. COVID-19 vaccines: Get the facts
  65. COVID-19 variant
  66. COVID-19 vs. flu: Similarities and differences
  67. COVID-19, cold, allergies and the flu: What are the differences?
  68. COVID-19: How can I protect myself?
  69. COVID-19: Who's at higher risk of serious symptoms?
  70. Croup
  71. Cryotherapy
  72. Curcumin: Can it slow cancer growth?
  73. Daily aspirin therapy: Understand the benefits and risks
  74. Debunking COVID-19 myths
  75. Diarrhea: Cancer-related causes and how to cope
  76. Different types of COVID-19 vaccines: How they work
  77. Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma
  78. Dilated cardiomyopathy
  79. Do zinc supplements shorten colds?
  80. Dust mite allergy
  81. Dysphagia
  82. Early HIV symptoms: What are they?
  83. Eating during cancer treatment: Tips to make food tastier
  84. Egg allergy
  85. Ehrlichiosis and anaplasmosis
  86. Enlarged heart
  87. Esophageal cancer
  88. Esophagitis
  89. Fasting diet: Can it improve my heart health?
  90. Fertility preservation: Understand your options before cancer treatment
  91. Fight coronavirus (COVID-19) transmission at home
  92. Flu masks
  93. Flu shot: Your best bet for avoiding influenza
  94. Flu shots: Especially important if you have heart disease
  95. Flu vaccine: Safe for people with egg allergy?
  96. Flu: When to see a doctor?
  97. Football Spinal Cord Injury - The Chris Norton Story
  98. Fructose intolerance: Which foods to avoid?
  99. Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
  100. GERD: Can certain medications make it worse?
  101. Goiter
  102. Granulomatosis with polyangiitis
  103. Grass-fed beef
  104. Group B strep disease
  105. H1N1 flu (swine flu)
  106. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome
  107. Healthy Heart for Life!
  108. Heart cancer: Is there such a thing?
  109. Heart disease
  110. Heart disease in women: Understand symptoms and risk factors
  111. Heart failure
  112. Heart failure action plan
  113. Heart failure and sex: Is it safe?
  114. Heart murmurs
  115. Heartburn medicines and B-12 deficiency
  116. Heart-healthy diet: 8 steps to prevent heart disease
  117. Herd immunity and COVID-19: What you need to know
  118. He's the bravest kid I've ever seen
  119. High-dose flu vaccines: How are they different from other flu vaccines?
  120. High-dose vitamin C: Can it kill cancer cells?
  121. Histoplasmosis
  122. HIV/AIDS
  123. Holiday Heart
  124. Honey: An effective cough remedy?
  125. How cancer spreads
  126. How do COVID-19 antibody tests differ from diagnostic tests?
  127. How well do face masks protect against COVID-19?
  128. Humidifiers: Ease skin, breathing symptoms
  129. Influenza (flu)
  130. Infographic: Cancer Clinical Trials Offer Many Benefits
  131. Infographic: Lung Cancer
  132. Interstitial lung disease
  133. Is hydroxychloroquine a treatment for COVID-19?
  134. Laryngitis
  135. Legionnaires' disease
  136. Long COVID: Lasting effects of COVID-19
  137. Low blood cell counts: Side effects of cancer treatment
  138. Lung cancer
  139. Lung nodules: Can they be cancerous?
  140. Mayo Clinic Minute: How dirty are common surfaces?
  141. Mayo Clinic Minute: What is an aneurysm?
  142. Mayo Clinic Minute: Why getting vaccinated for the flu is doubly important this season
  143. Mayo Clinic Minute: You're washing your hands all wrong
  144. Measles
  145. Measles vaccine: Can I get the measles if I've already been vaccinated?
  146. Menus for heart-healthy eating: Cut the fat and salt
  147. Mesothelioma
  148. Milk allergy
  149. Mitral valve stenosis
  150. Mort Crim and Cancer
  151. Nasal Cleaning
  152. Neti pot: Can it clear my nose?
  153. No appetite? How to get nutrition during cancer treatment
  154. Nonallergic rhinitis
  155. Non-Hodgkin lymphoma
  156. Nuts and your heart: Eating nuts for heart health
  157. Omega-3 in fish: How eating fish helps your heart
  158. Omega-6 fatty acids
  159. Opera Star's Surgery
  160. Pectus excavatum
  161. Pectus excavatum
  162. Pericardial effusion
  163. Pericarditis
  164. Pet allergy
  165. Petroleum jelly: Safe for a dry nose?
  166. PICC line placement
  167. Pleurisy
  168. Plugged ears: What is the remedy?
  169. Pneumonia
  170. Pneumonitis
  171. Polypill: Does it treat heart disease?
  172. Pregnancy and COVID-19: What are the risks?
  173. Pulmonary edema
  174. Pulmonary embolism
  175. Pulmonary fibrosis
  176. Radiofrequency ablation
  177. Recurrent breast cancer
  178. Red wine and resveratrol: Good for your heart?
  179. Researchers Develop New Stents for Complex Aortic Aneurysms
  180. Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)
  181. Roseola
  182. Safe outdoor activities during the COVID-19 pandemic
  183. Safety tips for attending school during COVID-19
  184. Sarcoidosis
  185. Self-care for the flu
  186. Self-Image During Cancer
  187. Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)
  188. Sex and COVID-19
  189. Sinus headaches
  190. Sinus infection and toothache: Any connection?
  191. Sjogren's syndrome
  192. Small cell, large cell cancer: What this means
  193. Spinal cord injury
  194. Stage 4 (metastatic) colon cancer
  195. Stevens-Johnson syndrome
  196. Strategies to prevent heart disease
  197. Super Survivor Conquers Cancer
  198. Thoracic aortic aneurysm
  199. Throat cancer
  200. Tracheomalacia
  201. Treating COVID-19 at home: Care tips for you and others
  202. Treating Pericarditis
  203. Tuberculosis
  204. Tuberous sclerosis
  205. Tumor vs. cyst: What's the difference?
  206. Unusual symptoms of coronavirus
  207. Valley fever
  208. Vascular rings
  209. VEXAS syndrome
  210. Vicks VapoRub: An effective nasal decongestant?
  211. Video: Heart and circulatory system
  212. Video: Valve-sparing aortic root replacement
  213. Walking pneumonia
  214. Warm-mist versus cool-mist humidifier: Which is better for a cold?
  215. What causes laryngospasm?
  216. What's the difference between H1N1 flu and influenza A?
  217. When cancer returns: How to cope with cancer recurrence
  218. Whipple's disease
  219. Whooping cough
  220. Whooping cough
  221. Zenker's diverticulum