Coughing? Eat chocolate

A chemical found in chocolate could help cure coughs, scientists have discovered.

The compound, theobromine, occurs naturally in cocoa - and could be the best treatment yet for coughs, according to a study being presented at a conference tomorrow.

Researchers from Imperial College London began investigating the benefits of theobromine after Hungarian scientists found that a similar compound could help alleviate asthma.

The British researchers recruited 10 healthy volunteers and had them inhale chilli peppers as a way of provoking them to cough.

They were then given either theobromine, a dummy placebo pill or the painkiller codeine - which is most commonly used in over-the-counter cough medicines.

Theobromine was better at alleviating coughing than both the dud pill and the codeine. The scientists are now conducting a larger-scale study in people who have developed coughs after viral infections.

Researcher Dr Omar Sharif Usmani, of Imperial College's National Heart and Lung Institute, said: "This is innovative research with interesting findings and could lead to new treatments for coughs. We need to do more research into people with coughs to see whether it could be beneficial."

Britons spend £100million a year on over-the-counter cough remedies, and recent research has found that many of the medicines on sale do little to help the condition. The research is due to be presented at the British Thoracic Society's winter meeting in London. The society's Dr John Harvey said: "More effective treatments for coughs are needed. The condition can be distressing, so I hope this research provides a clue for future treatments."

But he added: "It is too early to advise people suffering from coughs to treat themselves them with chocolate."

There is little doubt, however, that doctors would not have much difficulty persuading patients to swallow the medicine.