Cough Tasting Like Metal: Causes & Solutions

What Causes a Metallic Taste When Coughing?

Coughing is unpleasant enough—when it’s accompanied by a metallic taste, you’ll understandably be searching for relief. An iron-tasting cough can indicate a range of health concerns, from the common cold to gingivitis and even intense exercise. Finding the reason why you taste blood when coughing can help you find the proper care and achieve lasting relief.

In this article, we’ll explore the possible causes of a cough that tastes like metal, other strange tastes that may accompany coughing, and when to see a doctor for prompt medical treatment.

Why Do I Taste Blood When I Cough?

If you taste blood when coughing, you're likely experiencing particles of blood being forced into the mouth by the pressure of the cough. Phlegm and mucus from a cold or other type of upper respiratory infection can also carry blood into the mouth, leading to a deep chest cough with a metallic taste.

While tasting blood when you cough doesn’t necessarily mean you’re coughing up blood, you should address it promptly to protect your health.¹

Possible Causes of a Metallic Taste When Coughing

A metallic or tinny taste when you cough usually isn’t cause for worry. This is especially true if you taste blood when you cough, but don’t see any. However, identifying the cause of the metal taste can help you hone in on home remedies to calm your cough and seek professional care if needed.

Here are key reasons why you may experience a metallic taste after coughing:

Respiratory Infections

Viral infections including the common cold and sinusitis (sinus infections) affect the upper respiratory tract and may trigger an iron-tasting cough. Some of the most common symptoms of these infections include congestion, sneezing, sore throat, and coughing. The mucus your body produces to help fight the infection can carry trace amounts of blood and enter your mouth when you cough, creating a metallic taste.²

Colds are extremely common, with the average adult getting two to three colds each year.³ Thankfully, most colds are mild, go away in under a week, and don’t require professional medical care. Sinus infections are also quite prevalent, and an estimated 90% of patients with the common cold have some degree of sinusitis.⁴

Although it affects the lower respiratory tract, bronchitis is another respiratory infection that can cause a metallic taste when you cough. It causes inflammation in the lining of the bronchial tubes (the tubes that transport air into and away from the lungs). Bronchitis can cause persistent cough and thick mucus, both of which may lead to a metallic taste in your mouth.⁵

Gum Disease

The blood you’re tasting in your cough could be coming from your gums. With gum disease, accumulated bacteria cause the gum tissue to become infected and inflamed. As a result, your gums may bleed easily when you brush, floss, or even cough.

There are two main types of gum disease: Gingivitis and periodontitis. Gingivitis is the milder form of the condition, and it can be resolved with proper treatment. Periodontitis is a chronic form of gum disease that can’t be fully reversed but may be successfully managed with professional care from a dentist.⁶

Intense Exercise

Intense exercise can trigger a condition called exercise-induced pulmonary edema. This occurs when high-intensity physical activity increases chest pressure, causing fluid to accumulate in the lungs. Symptoms include coughing up blood, wheezing, shortness of breath, chest pain, and rapid heartbeat.⁷

Even if you don’t cough up visible blood from exercise-induced pulmonary edema, red blood cells may be present in the fluid that enters the lungs. If you cough up this fluid, it can taste metallic.

Individuals with asthma who have difficulty breathing during exercise may also experience a metallic taste while coughing or wheezing after an intense workout.

Severe Allergic Reactions

A metallic taste is a possible symptom of a severe allergic reaction, also known as anaphylaxis. When a severe allergic reaction begins, the body goes into shock and the immune system fights to ward off the allergen. As a result, the person’s airways start to constrict, which may trigger coughing and wheezing. The cough can bring particles of blood into the mouth, causing a metallic taste.

Other symptoms of anaphylaxis include:

Hives
Itching
Swelling of the tongue, lips, or mouth
Throat tightness
Vomiting
Chest pain
Dizziness or fainting
Confusion

Anaphylaxis is a medical emergency, so call 911 at the onset of the symptoms listed above. If an epinephrine auto-injector, like an EpiPen, is available, inject it into the outer thigh. Even if this medication alleviates the symptoms, you still need to visit the ER immediately.⁸

Certain Medications

Certain medications can lead to a metallic taste in the mouth. This occurs when your body absorbs the medication and it seeps into your saliva. Examples of medications that can make you taste copper when you cough, or even when you don’t cough, include:⁹

Antibiotics
Blood pressure medications
Lithium, a drug sometimes used to treat mental health conditions, including bipolar disorder
Metformin, a drug used to treat diabetes
Methazolamide, a glaucoma medication
Allopurinol, a medication used to treat gout

Other Odd Tastes When Coughing

If you experience a weird taste when you cough, it may be metallic. Other odd tastes that can occur when you cough include:

Bitter Taste

A bitter taste in the mouth can result from dry mouth, pregnancy, gingivitis, cavities, GERD, oral thrush, menopause, and certain medications.

Dry mouth is one of the most common causes of a bitter taste in the mouth. Also referred to as xerostomia, it occurs when the salivary glands don’t produce enough saliva, allowing more bacteria than usual to live in the mouth. Dry mouth can be triggered by:¹⁰

Dehydration
Medications, including drugs for depression and high blood pressure
Radiation therapy and chemotherapy
Underlying medical conditions, including diabetes, HIV, and AIDS
Nerve damage in the head or neck

Sour Taste

A sour taste in the mouth has many of the same causes as a bitter taste, including dehydration, oral health problems, GERD, and certain medications. It can also result from smoking, which can diminish your sense of taste.¹¹

Foul Taste

A foul or nasty taste when you cough can result from dry mouth, oral health problems, certain medications, GERD, and burning mouth syndrome. It’s also a potential side effect of certain neurological conditions, including multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease. These conditions can damage the nerves that supply your taste buds, leading to a foul or weird taste in your mouth.¹²

Salty Taste

Like all of the tastes listed above, a salty taste in your mouth may result from dry mouth, dehydration, medications, GERD, and neurological conditions. However, it can also be caused by postnasal drip. This occurs when mucus drains from your sinuses into your throat and combines with saliva. This combination of substances can contain salt.¹³

How to Treat the Metallic Taste When Coughing

It tastes metallic when I cough: What do I do? Many people ask themselves this question, especially during cold and flu season. Thankfully, most people who experience a metal taste with coughing are dealing with a common cold, sinus infection, or other viral infection that often resolves with at-home treatments, including over-the-counter medications, upping your fluid intake, and improving your oral hygiene.

Hydration

If you experience a bad taste in the back of the throat and phlegm, it’s very important to stay hydrated. Upping your fluid intake helps wash away the metallic taste, whether it’s caused by medications or lingering in phlegm. Staying hydrated can also help loosen congestion from a respiratory infection, helping to prevent coughing that could bring blood into the mouth.

Oral Hygiene

Maintaining good oral hygiene by brushing twice daily, flossing daily, and attending regular dentist appointments can prevent a cough that tastes bad. Oral hygiene helps rid your mouth of bacteria that can cause gingivitis.¹⁴ If you’ve been diagnosed with gingivitis or periodontitis, follow all of your dentist’s treatment recommendations, which may include additional office visits for treatments like scaling and root planing.

Alleviating Coughing due to cold with OTCs

You can ease coughing with OTC cough relief medication. Cough products often work by temporarily suppressing the cough reflex.

One option is Mucinex® Cough & Chest Congestion Liquid Gels, which help control coughing, relieve chest congestion, and thin mucus. This medication is free of nasal decongestants, sodium, sugar, and alcohol, making it a suitable option for people with high blood pressure or diabetes. OTC cough medication even controls coughing to help you get to sleep.

When to See a Doctor

If you have a dry cough with a bad taste, or you’re coughing mucus that tastes bad, it’s likely not cause for concern. But, make sure to monitor your symptoms and contact your doctor if:

The metallic taste doesn’t go away after you hydrate and recover from any respiratory infection or allergies
There’s no clear cause for the metallic taste
The taste started after you started a new medication
The taste is accompanied by other unexplained symptoms, such as:

Fever
Skin rash
Swelling in the feet and legs
Neurological symptoms, like difficulty speaking, vision changes, and muscle weakness

A metallic taste after coughing is uncomfortable, but it can likely be resolved with at-home care. However, don’t hesitate to contact your physician for an evaluation and treatment recommendations.

Resources

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Battisti AS, Pangia J. Sinusitis. PubMed. Published March 2, 2023. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470383/
Chest Cold (Acute Bronchitis) Basics. CDC. Published April 23, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/acute-bronchitis/about/index.html
About Periodontal (Gum) Disease. CDC. Published May 9, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/oral-health/about/gum-periodontal-disease.html
Bove AA. Pulmonary Aspects of Exercise and Sports. Methodist DeBakey Cardiovascular Journal. 2016;12(2):93-97. doi:https://doi.org/10.14797/mdcj-12-2-93
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Sour Taste in Your Mouth? Here Are the 7 Most Common Causes. Cleveland Clinic. Published February 8, 2019. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/sour-taste-in-your-mouth-here-are-the-7-most-common-causes
Dysgeusia: Definition, Treatment & Causes. Cleveland Clinic. Published November 4, 2021. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/22047-dysgeusia
What’s Causing That Salty Taste in Your Mouth? Cleveland Clinic. Published June 2022. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/salty-taste-in-mouth
Godman H. Tips to fight. Harvard Health. Published May 2024. https://www.health.harvard.edu/diseases-and-conditions/tips-to-fight-metal-mouth