What can feel more frustrating than having a cough? Having a cough that happens more often or gets worse at night. It affects how much you can relax, fall and stay asleep, and get much-needed rest for recovery.
“During sleep, the body regulates our production of cytokines, signaling proteins our immune systems produce to fight off invading pathogens such as viruses and bacteria,” says Vontrelle Roundtree, MD, associate chief medical officer at MDLIVE of Evernorth. “If you have a nagging cough that causes you to wake up often throughout the night, it compromises sleep quality, potentially affecting your body’s cytokine regulation and making it difficult for your immune system to combat and recover from sickness.”
Not only does coughing affect your ability to get over any illnesses that may cause the cough, but it may also cause you to have more symptoms that further affect your nighttime rest. “Coughing may also cause dry throat and mouth, postnasal drip, and physical discomfort that makes for a less-than-peaceful sleep experience,” Roundtree says.
Nighttime coughing can happen and feel worse for many reasons. It may be due to problems with your lungs and airways, such as infection, postnasal drip, allergies, and asthma. These can cause coughs that get worse at night, says Samuel Mathis, MD, assistant professor in the Department of Family Medicine at University of Texas Medical Branch. For instance, “with lung infections, lying down helps the cilia [little ‘hairs’ in our lungs] to more effectively move mucus out of the lungs, and the cough reflex is our body’s attempt to get rid of the excess mucus,” he says.
Roundtree says that “moving around during the day makes it easier for the body to loosen trapped mucus. When we lie down to rest at night, this position can make it more challenging for our bodies to naturally clear this mucus, resulting in what we call postnasal drip — nasal secretions that pool in the back of the throat and cause those pesky coughs.”
Nighttime coughs may also be a symptom of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) or acid reflux. “GERD happens when stomach acid flows back into the esophagus, irritating its lining and potentially reaching the back of your throat,” Roundtree says. “The act of lying down can cause the reflux to get worse, and then, of course, you may cough more,” says Sarah McBane, PharmD, associate dean of pharmacy education at the University of California, Irvine School of Pharmacy.
“To combat nighttime cough due to GERD, elevate your body at an incline to prevent the pooling of mucus, allowing for a more peaceful and less interrupted night’s sleep,” she says.
Other conditions that can cause coughing fits include heart failure and sleep apnea, Mathis says.
You may also have a nighttime cough when you’re taking medications such as ACE inhibitors for high blood pressure. These are known to have a dry cough as a side effect, Mathis says.
Our body’s circadian rhythm, the internal clock that helps manage important body functions (including sleep and immune response), may also play a role, Roundtree says. “Some parts of immune function are more active during the nighttime and into the early morning, which explains why you might feel your worst during those hours. While this natural response helps fight off the bacteria making you ill, it may also cause many of our sick symptoms during that time, such as congestion, fever, and increased nighttime coughing.”
How you manage your nighttime cough depends on how serious it is and what’s causing it, Roundtreee says. She advises seeing a doctor if your cough is constant, very bad, and comes with other concerning symptoms.
In the meantime, you can try this expert advice for managing mild coughs at night:
If these tips do not help with your cough, or if the cough lasts more than a couple of weeks, McBane advises seeing a doctor.
Roundtree also recommends seeing a doctor if your cough lasts over a few days and you have other symptoms like chest pain, nausea, wheezing, or high fever. Mathis agrees, saying that if you cough up blood, have shortness of breath, and your legs or feet swell, you should be checked by a doctor. “They can help you identify the cause of your cough and treat the underlying issue.”
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