I've been using Mullein tea for the past 8 months. I have to say, it helps but it's only a piece of the puzzle. As a supplement, it aids in keeping mucus thin as it acts as an expectant. My brother tried it for his COPD and found it helped him too. Thinner mucus = less coughing, right? Other supplements I use every morning are Mucinex which thins mucus too. And I have just recently started taking NAC - not sure if that is helping yet - too soon.
I'm a tea drinker - from morning to night. I add a Mullein tea bag to each of my 3-4 morning cups along with my regular peppermint and green tea. For me, it works so I'll continue with it.
One of the more inexpensive brands I tried had bags that would often split which made a mess in my cup. I changed brands to a better quality. Makes a difference and the bags are always good.
Hope this helps.
After reading your post I have a couple questions if you don’t mind. I too have all those supplements at home and could use them, but have never been given or received clear advice on dosage. Especially on the Mucinex and the NAC. Do you take NAC 600mg twice daily? And how long do THEY (?) say before you know if it is helpful or not? Second Mucinex what strength and dosage do you take? I know they have a time release tablet (600mg or 1200mg) I think most take the 600mg twice daily. Please post your thoughts. As far as the Mullen I use the liquid drop 3x daily. To early to tell if working for me also. Have only been 1 week or so. Interestingly though the directions state to take 1mg in the provided dropper under the tounge 3x daily. I know from having a cardiac history, that when you have chest pain and have Nitroglycerin tablets, you supposed to put them under the tongue also. Interesting right?
After reading your post I have a couple questions if you don’t mind. I too have all those supplements at home and could use them, but have never been given or received clear advice on dosage. Especially on the Mucinex and the NAC. Do you take NAC 600mg twice daily? And how long do THEY (?) say before you know if it is helpful or not? Second Mucinex what strength and dosage do you take? I know they have a time release tablet (600mg or 1200mg) I think most take the 600mg twice daily. Please post your thoughts. As far as the Mullen I use the liquid drop 3x daily. To early to tell if working for me also. Have only been 1 week or so. Interestingly though the directions state to take 1mg in the provided dropper under the tounge 3x daily. I know from having a cardiac history, that when you have chest pain and have Nitroglycerin tablets, you supposed to put them under the tongue also. Interesting right?
Hi Spider109, please remember that I am not a professional and tend to do what makes sense to me and what has worked over time. Besides Mac and bronchiectasis, I have rheumatoid arthritis. I had it first and to save a very long story, I'm going to skip to the chase. I got a wake up call in 2017 because one day I was coughing and had hemoptysis - once in the ER, I had 4 infections, Mac being one of them. I was very, very sick and I didn't even know it. My RA's c-reactive protein numbers were off the charts and after that I got off my biologic RA meds but was maxed out on methotrexate. I had to have help so I spent an incredible amount of time and energy trying to cut inflammation in my body. I also learned that gluten, yeast and bread were not my friend. That was one of most difficult adjustments. Then, green tea substituted for coffee. Mint tea and chamomile came next - they help with inflammation. Salmon and chicken dominate my diet along with rice, potato and vegetables. DASH and Mediterranean diets are good but I don't really like olives 🙂 mixed in with my food but love olive oil. I rarely drink alcohol. Limit sugar!! - this is huge, like bread. Doing these things was and is the best medicine for me.
When I found out I had bronchiectasis, I also got tested for CF. I tested borderline on the first test and the later I was retested and was fine. But, during that time with the CF doctor, he highly recommended that I start taking Mucinex 600 mg 12 hour right away and every day for the rest of my life probably. I take it every morning getting out of bed with a 16oz glass of water. That helped. I didn't realize it at first but my coughs were more productive and I found once I cleared the mucus, I was good the rest of the day with no or not much coughing at all. I was thrilled. Recently, I heard that NAC is a good anti-inflammatory so I started taking it - just 1 - 600 mg that I take at night. I figure that it help keep mucus thin through the night. Now, when I do my nebulizer treatment in the morning, I only occasionally have any mucus come up. When I do, it's quick and over within a few minutes. I'm a big tea drinker and I learned of Mullein tea helping inflammation for people with COPD. So, I tried it and I have 3-4 morning cups of tea with mullein, mint and green tea bags together. Afternoon, I only drink mint tea with mullein if I feel a bit of congestion growing. I switch to chamomile at 5 for the rest of the evening.
One doctor along the way taught me about the DASH/Mediterranean diet. And another doctor suggested 1500 mg of turmeric for my RA inflammation. I researched and listened to others fighting their inflammation battles. It's all about the inflammation. If I felt that I was loosing that battle, I will without a doubt add another NAC. There is a support group that covers NAC on this sight. I have only peaked at a few of the topics but I bet you could find out more about it there.
You can wash Mullein and dry with cloth or paper towel. I dry it outside in the sun under a light cloth. I make a strong tea and drink daily (with honey and sometimes lemon). Also make a tincture by filling a jar with dried leaves and cover with the highest proof vodka I can find letting it sit for 8 weeks. Then strain and put liquid into dropper bottles. 1 dropper full per day. Also make apple cider tincture (for children). Make sure you turn jars top to bottom from time to time. Have found this works well, helps reduce mucus, coughing and clears sinuses. Several requests for more from those who use it regularly. I would not even suggest it would cure MAC or other lung ailments but it has helped with mucus reduction in our case.
Barbara I (and my family) have been using it for 3 years now. Tinctures are normally made with high proof alcohol because alcohol draws the medicinal compounds from the plant thereby making concentrated tinctures that are taken in small amounts. You could use another alcohol with a higher proof if you can find one. Ideally 100 proof is best. Vodka also has no flavour. Apple cider vinegar will also draw out compounds but not to the same extent but it has a strong flavour. For children I add a dropper full to a juice. .
Barbara I (and my family) have been using it for 3 years now. Tinctures are normally made with high proof alcohol because alcohol draws the medicinal compounds from the plant thereby making concentrated tinctures that are taken in small amounts. You could use another alcohol with a higher proof if you can find one. Ideally 100 proof is best. Vodka also has no flavour. Apple cider vinegar will also draw out compounds but not to the same extent but it has a strong flavour. For children I add a dropper full to a juice. .
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After reading your post I have a couple questions if you don’t mind. I too have all those supplements at home and could use them, but have never been given or received clear advice on dosage. Especially on the Mucinex and the NAC. Do you take NAC 600mg twice daily? And how long do THEY (?) say before you know if it is helpful or not? Second Mucinex what strength and dosage do you take? I know they have a time release tablet (600mg or 1200mg) I think most take the 600mg twice daily. Please post your thoughts. As far as the Mullen I use the liquid drop 3x daily. To early to tell if working for me also. Have only been 1 week or so. Interestingly though the directions state to take 1mg in the provided dropper under the tounge 3x daily. I know from having a cardiac history, that when you have chest pain and have Nitroglycerin tablets, you supposed to put them under the tongue also. Interesting right?
Hi Spider109, please remember that I am not a professional and tend to do what makes sense to me and what has worked over time. Besides Mac and bronchiectasis, I have rheumatoid arthritis. I had it first and to save a very long story, I'm going to skip to the chase. I got a wake up call in 2017 because one day I was coughing and had hemoptysis - once in the ER, I had 4 infections, Mac being one of them. I was very, very sick and I didn't even know it. My RA's c-reactive protein numbers were off the charts and after that I got off my biologic RA meds but was maxed out on methotrexate. I had to have help so I spent an incredible amount of time and energy trying to cut inflammation in my body. I also learned that gluten, yeast and bread were not my friend. That was one of most difficult adjustments. Then, green tea substituted for coffee. Mint tea and chamomile came next - they help with inflammation. Salmon and chicken dominate my diet along with rice, potato and vegetables. DASH and Mediterranean diets are good but I don't really like olives 🙂 mixed in with my food but love olive oil. I rarely drink alcohol. Limit sugar!! - this is huge, like bread. Doing these things was and is the best medicine for me.
When I found out I had bronchiectasis, I also got tested for CF. I tested borderline on the first test and the later I was retested and was fine. But, during that time with the CF doctor, he highly recommended that I start taking Mucinex 600 mg 12 hour right away and every day for the rest of my life probably. I take it every morning getting out of bed with a 16oz glass of water. That helped. I didn't realize it at first but my coughs were more productive and I found once I cleared the mucus, I was good the rest of the day with no or not much coughing at all. I was thrilled. Recently, I heard that NAC is a good anti-inflammatory so I started taking it - just 1 - 600 mg that I take at night. I figure that it help keep mucus thin through the night. Now, when I do my nebulizer treatment in the morning, I only occasionally have any mucus come up. When I do, it's quick and over within a few minutes. I'm a big tea drinker and I learned of Mullein tea helping inflammation for people with COPD. So, I tried it and I have 3-4 morning cups of tea with mullein, mint and green tea bags together. Afternoon, I only drink mint tea with mullein if I feel a bit of congestion growing. I switch to chamomile at 5 for the rest of the evening.
One doctor along the way taught me about the DASH/Mediterranean diet. And another doctor suggested 1500 mg of turmeric for my RA inflammation. I researched and listened to others fighting their inflammation battles. It's all about the inflammation. If I felt that I was loosing that battle, I will without a doubt add another NAC. There is a support group that covers NAC on this sight. I have only peaked at a few of the topics but I bet you could find out more about it there.
Hope this helps.
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2 ReactionsHow long have you been using Mullein? Why the use of vodka with it.? Nice to hear that you have experienced less mucus and coughing.
Barbara
Barbara I (and my family) have been using it for 3 years now. Tinctures are normally made with high proof alcohol because alcohol draws the medicinal compounds from the plant thereby making concentrated tinctures that are taken in small amounts. You could use another alcohol with a higher proof if you can find one. Ideally 100 proof is best. Vodka also has no flavour. Apple cider vinegar will also draw out compounds but not to the same extent but it has a strong flavour. For children I add a dropper full to a juice. .
Thanks for your reply. I have considered starting Mullein tea for a while now. Thanks for the explanation of all.
Barbara