Minging question about phlegm!?

Question

I apologise in advance. Had a cold last week, and kept getting phlegm in my throat. Its absolutely vile and makes me gag. Why do we get it? Is it from your lungs? When will it go? any "remedies"? I have been drinking lots of orange juice and taking vitamin c tablets to make it all go quicker. Does cordial orange juice have more or less of vitamin c than fresh orange? The cold has gone, but the phlegm is still coming. I get it mostly when i wake up in the mornings. sorry to be discusting! thanks x

Answer 1

When you've had a cold, the airways in your lungs get irritated and produce phlegm. The phlegm you're getting now will decrease now your cold's gone.

There is something you can do to help, get a big bowl of steaming water, put a towel over your head and bend over the bowl, the towel catches the steam and you inhale it through your mouth. This will help loosen the phlegm so you can cough more of it up. I have asthma and am more susceptible to phlegm when I get a cold and this works a treat for me.

Drinking orange cordial can in fact increase phlegm production in some people, maybe this is the case with you. If possible try to drink fresh orange, it also has more vitamin C in it anyway.

Answer 2

There are probably a couple of main reasons why you're still getting phlegm after you're cold has cleared.

It is said that phlegm is there to take away the infections which appear when you're ill out of the body. So this is why we have bodily effusions to eject unwanted items out of the body - sneezing, vomiting, toilet habits etc (sorry to be so blunt).

Now as you have phlegm after you're cold you probably have/had a chest infection (especially noticeable if you phelgm changed colour from clear to green to yellow and then clear again). Phelgm is just a sign that you're recovering from your infection.

Alternatively, you may be sensitive or allergic to something that you started taken whilst you had your cold. The body has to get rid of it some how. I would stop taking the cordial because it's probably loaded with chemicals and take the orange juice (ideally not from concentrate) as it would have a higher level of Vit C.

Answer 3

Orange cordial might make the problem seem worse - it does when I've got a cold. It doesnt have any Vit C in anyway - you need fresh orange juice for that. Why not go and ask your pharmacist for an Expectorant to shift the gunk off your chest. xx

Answer 4

Phlegm is horrid, but the best thing to do is to keep trying to cough it up, try not to swallow it, that will just make you feel yuck. In the morning when you are feeling the phlegm rattling about, try some deep breathing, big breath in then blow out through your mouth as hard as you can so that you cough, do a few of these, trust me it works, it may make you gag, but it will help get rid of the phlegm.
Good luck and happy deep breathing!

Answer 5

I'm sorry to say that the best way is to just let it come up. But don't despair. There are several over the counter medications that will help with this. They are expectorants. Mucinex, BronkAid, some of the Robitussins. This is a medication that thins the mucus and makes it much easier to get up. It also dilates the bronchial passages to ease breathing until you're all clear again.

Answer 6

Best thing to do when you have loads of phlegm is to put a few drops of olbas oil or carvol into a bowl of freshly boiled water and breathe in the steam. This will loosen up all the nastiness you have in your chest and it will all come up. Do it twice a day for a couple of days and it should clear.

Answer 7

Try all the remedies. Olbas is certainly a good one. But if this goes on for more than another week, see your doctor.

This is very important. I had a chest infection in 2000, but carried on coughing up stuff. In the end my doc referred me to hosptl. It took them 2 years and a scan to find out that I have damage to one lung - that original infection has left a hole there - a condition called bronchiectasis.

Look after yourself please! x

Answer 8

If its on your chest you need anti biotics to help clear it, but saying that ive now had my 5th lot of antibiotics and am still choking myself. I dont smoke but if you do then it would aggrevate it. Mine is worse in the mornings than at any other time.
Again it could just be down to allergies - im half wondering if my daughters cat has something to do with mine!

Answer 9

I have asthma and we are told to avoid orange juice when we are unwell - I think it actually helps create more phlegm. Avoid orange juice

Answer 10

best just to keep getting it up as it is helping by clearing you chest