Using home remedies such as turmeric root or cloves to fight cough is a common practice, but a doctor on Friday warned against using these, after removing turmeric pieces that formed layers in an 85-year-old farmer’s lungs.

The farmer was presented at DPU Super Specialty Hospital in Pune with an intractable cough that he had been suffering for the last three months and subsequently led to difficulty in breathing. The man had previously visited several hospitals, but could not find a proper treatment for his cough.