![]() (adapted from Mayo Clinic Health Letter) - Dr. In the meantime, measures that might help include taking in plenty of fluids to stay hydrated, gently suctioning out the discharge, using saline nasal drops to rinse out or irrigate the nasal cavities, and perhaps using a cool-mist humidifier to moisten the air. Phlegm that is gray or white is a sign of an upper. Clear mucus can be an indication of allergies, but gray, white or green/yellow phlegm is an indicator that you’re probably suffering from a bacterial or viral infection in your respiratory system. Green or yellow phlegm can occur with an infection, but brown. Problems in the lungs can cause phlegm to change color. Under these circumstances, an antibiotic may lessen the severity of symptoms and shorten the duration of the illness. Your phlegm’s color can provide insight into your current state of your health. Phlegm is a type of mucus that comes from the lungs and respiratory tract. In a few cases, a bacterial infection may develop on top of a viral cold, in which case symptoms may get better and then worse again. In addition, symptoms due to a bacterial infection often last more than 10 days without improvement. Thick, colored nasal mucus more often occurs at the beginning of a bacterial illness, rather than several days into it, as occurs with a viral infection. ![]() Postnasal drip has many causes, including allergies, infections, pregnancy, medications and GERD. In addition to feeling like mucus is draining down your throat, symptoms of postnasal drip include cough, the urge to clear your throat and hoarseness. However, the timing of symptoms may offer a clue as to the type of germs present. When excess mucus builds up and drips down the back of your throat, it’s called postnasal drip. Antibiotics do nothing against viruses - regardless of whether green mucus is produced. Viruses cause the vast majority of colds in both children and adults. Over the next few days, the discharge tends to clear up or dry up. ![]() This coloration is likely due to an increase in the number of certain immune system cells, or an increase in the enzymes these cells produce. Both viral and bacterial upper respiratory infections can cause similar changes to the type and coloration of nasal mucus.ĭuring a common cold, nasal mucus may start out watery and clear, then become progressively thicker and more opaque, taking on a yellow or green tinge. Can you confirm?ĪNSWER: Greenish-gray or yellowish nasal mucus - your health care provider might call it purulent nasal discharge - isn’t a sure sign of a bacterial infection, although that is a common myth - even in the medical world. I’ve heard that this is a sign of a bacterial infection and perhaps the need for antibiotics. DEAR MAYO CLINIC: My grandson frequently has a runny nose, and the color of the nasal mucus is sometimes green to yellowish. ![]()
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