GERD Cough: What Causes It and How to Stop It

When your cough won’t quit—even after colds and allergies are gone—it might not be a respiratory issue at all. It could be GERD cough, a persistent cough triggered by stomach acid rising into the throat. Also known as reflux-related cough, this isn’t just a side effect—it’s a direct signal that your digestive system is out of balance. Unlike a cough from a cold, a GERD cough usually hits at night, after meals, or when you lie down. It’s dry, scratchy, and doesn’t respond to typical cough meds. And if you’ve been told it’s "just allergies" or "post-nasal drip," but nothing helps, you might be missing the real culprit: acid reflux.

GERD cough happens because stomach acid travels up the esophagus and irritates the nerves in your throat and airways. These nerves are so sensitive that even tiny amounts of acid can trigger a cough reflex—no vomiting, no heartburn, just a relentless cough. That’s why many people with GERD cough don’t even feel the classic burning sensation. It’s silent reflux, and it’s more common than you think. Studies show up to 75% of people with chronic cough have GERD as the root cause, even if they never had heartburn before. This cough doesn’t need antibiotics or inhalers. It needs a shift in how you manage acid exposure.

That’s where things get practical. You can’t just pop a cough syrup and call it done. You need to understand what makes reflux worse: big meals, late eating, coffee, alcohol, spicy food, tight clothes, and lying down too soon after eating. And while proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are often prescribed, they don’t work for everyone—and they’re not a long-term fix for everyone either. Lifestyle changes often do more than meds. Elevating your head while sleeping, waiting three hours after dinner before lying down, and cutting out trigger foods can reduce coughing faster than you expect.

What you’ll find in the posts below isn’t just a list of drugs. It’s a real-world look at how medications like amitriptyline (used for nerve pain and sleep) can help calm overactive cough nerves, how spironolactone might affect fluid balance in ways that influence reflux, and how nitrofurantoin and other antibiotics can interact with your gut in ways that worsen reflux. You’ll see how expired meds, advertising tricks, and even how you store your pills can play a hidden role in your symptoms. This isn’t theory. It’s what people are actually dealing with—and what’s working for them.