With COPD, lungs and airways don't work the way they should. The airways become damaged because of swelling in airway lining. They also make more mucus. This clogs the airways.
Push on your belly with your arms as you cough. The first cough brings the mucus through the lung airways. The next coughs bring it up and out. Inhale again, but do it slowly and gently through your nose.
Mucus can tell quite the health story. Too much mucus is a sign of a chronic respiratory condition, acute illness, and some types of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). 1 While mucus can be beneficial to the body, producing too much mucus can cause breathing difficulties and infection.
Possible causes of excess mucus can be food allergies, an acid reflux from the stomach, or an infection. The consistency of mucus in the throat also varies depending on what is going on in your body. Common causes of too much mucus in the throat include a cold or flu, acute bronchitis, sinusitis or pneumonia.
Someone who develops new or increased red, brown, black, or frothy sputum should call their doctor for an appointment immediately. These symptoms can be signs of a more serious medical condition that requires prompt treatment.
Sputum may be clear or white and frothy (mucoid). Sputum which is slightly thicker and cloudy or opaque (mucopurulent). If you have an infection you may see the colour of your sputum getting darker with either a yellow of green tinge.
Stage 1 Symptoms are mild and often unnoticed, except during times of exertion. These include mild shortness of breath and a nagging dry cough. Stage 2 Shortness of breath worsens, accompanied by a persistent cough and phlegm production. Flare-ups can cause changes in phlegm color.
People with mild emphysema who quit smoking have a normal life expectancy. Those who adopt good health habits can enjoy a fairly normal lifestyle for a long time. Even people whose emphysema is severe have a good chance of surviving for five years or more.
Emphysema usually progresses slowly and the majority of patients do not notice the changes in their breathing. Some patients do experience a faster onset of symptoms, though that is less common.
If you're suffering from allergies, asthma or another condition that is causing excess mucus production, it's important to seek medical treatment. However, in cases where phlegm results from a viral infection, such as the common cold, it will usually resolve on its own within seven to 10 days.
Healthy mucus is usually clear. But during a flare-up, it might become white, yellow, green, or brown.
Effective (or controlled) coughing has just enough force to loosen and carry mucus through the airways without causing them to narrow and collapse. For people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), this saves energy.
When COPD gets worse it is called an exacerbation (ex-zass-er-BAY-shun). During an exacerbation you may suddenly feel short of breath, or your cough may get worse. You may also cough up phlegm, and it may be thicker than normal or an unusual color.
Signs and symptoms of emphysema take years to develop, but once they start, they generally include shortness of breath, coughing with mucus, wheezing and chest tightness.
BACKGROUND: A common auscultatory finding in pulmonary emphysema is a reduction of lung sounds. This might be due to a reduction in the generation of sounds due to the accompanying airflow limitation or to poor transmission of sounds due to destruction of parenchyma.
When to use oxygen for emphysema. A doctor may recommend that a person begin using oxygen therapy when their blood oxygen saturation falls below 88% or their blood oxygen level falls below 55 millimeters of mercury (mmHg) at rest.
Most mucus problems are temporary. But producing too much mucus contributes to some serious conditions. This includes cystic fibrosis, a genetic disorder that causes mucus in the lungs to become thick and glue-like.
Is coughing up phlegm a good thing? Yes. While the presence of mucus may indicate an underlying issue, coughing up phlegm is a good thing because it helps clear irritants, allergens and infections out of your system.
So here's the big question: Should you spit or swallow your phlegm? Even though it might taste nasty, “there's nothing wrong with swallowing it,” Dr. Comer says. In fact, that's probably what your body expects you to do, which is why phlegm naturally drains down into the back of your throat.
Environmental factors. Exposure to certain irritants, such as smoke and other fumes, can irritate the airway. This irritation can cause a cough with excess phlegm.