Mucus

Every year around flu season our offices are packed with patients with all kinds of coughs, colds and sniffles. Inevitably, the conversation will include a description of mucus. “I felt bad three days ago, then started seeing yellow mucus, but today it is green, so I know I need an antibiotic.”   In reality, the color of mucus is rarely used as an indication by itself for the presence of an infection or not. Patients with clear mucus can actually have severe infections, and patients with green, bloody mucus can be fine. Doctors look at the big picture and things like fever, wheezing, inflammation, cough and vital signs to more accurately figure out what is going on.  Clear mucus is normal mucus. Composed mostly of water, clear nasal discharge is produced at rates up to 1.5 liters daily, and commonly runs down the back of the throat and dissolves in the stomach. Allergies and congestion can cause more of it to be produced, and the absence of color generally means there ...

If you have a runny nose, your first instinct is probably to grab a tissue, blow, and throw that sucker away. But for the sake of your health, you might want to add one more step to that process: Checking the color of your snot. As unglamourous as that sounds, the color of your boogers can reveal a lot about what’s going on inside your body—and why you have a runny nose in the first place. Your body produces about one and a half quarts of mucus every day and for a very important reason: It protects protects your nose and sinuses from foreign invaders that could make you sick, such as dust and bacteria. If you blow your nose and see nothing but transparent liquid, you’re probably in the clear. Healthy snot has no color. Seasonal allergies may also produce clear-colored discharge. (Here’s how to know if your runny nose is due to a cold or seasonal allergies.) Boogers not clear? Here’s what it could mean: White , yellow or green mucus could mean the common cold or viral or bacteria...