Bad Cold or Sinus Infection?

I believe it comes from your lungs and all the respiratory system in between there and your nose!  It's designed to catch dust and other foreign bodies and expel them (via your nose) before then can become trapped in your lungs and cause damage (that's why you get normal boogers when you don't have a cold!) but when you've got a cold all the membranes go into overdrive trying to expel the virus.

Ummm no.  The sinuses produce the mucous.  It is the histamines that stimulate the sinuses to produce mucous.  that is why you would take an ANTI-histamine, to stop the snot production.

same boat here, sister. i always get the dreaded trans-atlantic flight cold. 

i'm treating it with copious amounts of tea, which i firmly believe fixes everything 

the bugger of it is that i had just gotten over a nasty chesty cough. pah.

i'm blaming the damp--my body's used to cold & dry, not cold & damp.

i'm treating it with copious amounts of tea, which i firmly believe fixes everything 

Or a hot toddy, that was my grams cure for everything

Ummm no.  The sinuses produce the mucous.  It is the histamines that stimulate the sinuses to produce mucous.  that is why you would take an ANTI-histamine, to stop the snot production.

As I said it comes from the lungs and the whole respiratory system in between.  Mucus that comes out your nose doesn't just come from your sinuses, it comes from all the little hairy mucus producing tubes leading to your lungs as well.  Anti-histamines do not primarily stop snot production, they counteract the effect of histamines, which have a side effect of making your nose run, but have other effects too.

us pharmacists aren't the same as UK ones... they don't give out info like that...

sure they do! You just have to ask... I've done it at Longs, CVS etc.

I am having some green snot days with this cold... it alternates nostrils too so go figure that one!

I like saline nasal spray. I just tried one of those menthol inhalers... basically concentrated Vicks in a plastic tube you shove up your nose and sniff. That's weird but better for going out in public without smelling like Vicks.

the bugger of it is that i had just gotten over a nasty chesty cough. pah.

Hey, for all you silver-lining folks, think of it this way - each cold you contract teaches your immune system, and if you catch one strain of the virus, you are unlikely to ever contract it again!  So the more colds you get out of the way, the less you'll have to deal with as you get older!  Until the bastards mutate...

Here's my golden rule:  when the snot's green, you need seen.

My daughter's pediatrician says that green snot ='s infection is bogus and so did my doctor when I went in for what I thought was a sinus infection.  But whenever I've had them (many times) it's always been the nasty nasty green. 

As I said it comes from the lungs and the whole respiratory system in between.  Mucus that comes out your nose doesn't just come from your sinuses, it comes from all the little hairy mucus producing tubes leading to your lungs as well.  Anti-histamines do not primarily stop snot production, they counteract the effect of histamines, which have a side effect of making your nose run, but have other effects too.

*Boring science post warning* 

The mucus from your sinuses is produced in your sinuses.

Whilst the lungs and other parts of the respiratory system DO have mucus producing glandular cells, the digestive and respiratory systems merge in the throat and oral cavity, which is primarily lined with non-mucus producing stratified squamous epithelium.

The glandular cells of the respiratory tract do have cilia ("hair"), and normally the mucus sits on top of this hair, trapping stuff (dust, pollen, bacteria, etc). The cilia move the mucus towards the nearest exit (in the case of the lungs, to the esophagus and for the sinuses, the back of the throat or the nose).

I suppose there is a teensy chance that some of the mucus produced in the lungs *could* move up through to the sinuses, it's pretty unlikely as it would have to pass through the throat (squamous lined section that is smooth and non-ciliated.) The body likes efficiency and that's just a waste of energy.

Sorry. Couldn't resist. 

*Boring science post warning* 

Sorry. Couldn't resist. 

Thank you Courtney! 

TMI I know. Roll your eyes at me if you must, but I am in touch with my inner geek. 

TMI I know. Roll your eyes at me if you must, but I am in touch with my inner geek. 

I appreciated the info ... but perhaps I shouldn't have read it while eating breakfast! 

I have zero control of your personal activities whilst reading my posts.