a throat lozenge (it is commonly called a cough drop) is a small pill that slowly breaks in a person's mouth. it breaks because it touches the spit in their mouth and dissolves. when it dissolves, medication inside the lozenge will go inside their body. the medication is sometimes for pain relief, stopping coughs, making your mouth more wet, stopping painful throats, or for other things. they were made for the first time in 1000 bc by egypt's 20th dynasty as candies that stop painful throats. they commonly use the drugs benzocaine, menthol, or the plant oil from eucalyptus trees. they sometimes use dextromethorphan to stop coughs and in the 1800s they used morphine and heroin for the same reason.