Excessive Phlegm & Mucus
Symptoms of constant phlegm problems and information to help with excessive mucus in your throat.
Select a Topic
- What is Excessive Phlegm & Mucus?
- What Causes Excessive Phlegm & Mucus?
- Help for Excessive Phlegm & Mucus
What is Excessive Phlegm & Mucus?
Having excessive phlegm or mucus can be a very bothersome problem and may lead to hours of unrelenting, constant throat-clearing and coughing. For some people, this is a temporary problem that lasts as long as the infection that causes it. For others, however, it becomes an ongoing problem for which there is often little relief or apparent means of eliminating it.
Products like Native Remedies® Mucus-Clear™ may help in either case, providing temporary relief from symptoms of excessive mucus and throat congestion.
What Causes Excessive Phlegm & Mucus?
Seasonal allergies can stimulate the release of high levels of histamine into the body, resulting in excessive phlegm. Food allergies are also known to cause excessive phlegm, while certain types of food, such as dairy products, cause a thickening of mucus. Post nasal drip is another cause of excess mucus, specifically excess mucus at the back of your nose and throat.
Excessive, thick phlegm or chest mucus can often be caused by viral or bacterial infections such as influenza, bronchitis and pneumonia, as well as irritants such as those inhaled during smoking. Chemotherapy also causes the immune system to overreact and produce excessive phlegm. Other possible causes of excessive phlegm and mucus may include pregnancy, candida infection and COPD, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease caused by smoking.
Regardless of the cause of excessive mucus and phlegm, people have found relief with natural products like Mucus-Clear™.
Other Possible Causes of Phlegm
- Seasonal Allergies
- Food Allergies
- Post Nasal Drip
- Indigestion
- Acid Reflux
- Smoking
- Stress, which can cause a condition known as "Vasomotor Rhinitis".
- Viral or Bacterial Infections (e.g. Candida, Influenza, Bronchitis, Pneumonia, etc.)
- Pregnancy
- Chemotherapy
Other medically diagnosed reasons may include (please consult your doctor):
- Strep Throat
- Lyme Disease
- Lung Cancer
- Emphysema
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
The color, consistency and amount of phlegm produced can be a useful diagnostic tool to help your physician determine the cause. If you have excessive phlegm for an ongoing period, or excessive mucus is accompanied by a fever or other symptoms, it is always advisable to make an appointment with your doctor. Your doctor can make a medical diagnosis while ruling out underlying conditions
Natural products, such as Mucus-Clear™, may be helpful for alleviating symptoms of excessive phlegm and mucus while you’re waiting to receive an official diagnosis from your doctor.
Help for Excessive Phlegm & Mucus
Hacking coughs and endless throat clearing are problems that can be greatly helped by improving general lung health.
Tips for managing excessive phlegm & mucus
- Drink plenty of water to loosen the phlegm and help wash down any phlegm that gets deposited in the throat.
- Quitting or reducing smoking can help bring relief from excessive mucus. Smoking irritates the mucus membranes and causes the lungs to produce excessive phlegm.
- Treat nasal and sinus infections as soon as they occur, as these often lead to chest infections and can cause excessive phlegm.
- Do not take pharmaceutical cough suppressants, as they are known to cause phlegm to build up in the lungs which can lead to prolonged infection.
- Products such as Mucus-Clear™ may also provide temporary relief from symptoms of throat congestion and excessive mucus.
