>Overview Excess mucus is generally a sign of "sweet blood". Blood that is high in sugar, fats, or proteins is sweet blood. Sweet blood is thicker than dry blood and causes mucus. Sweet blood causes thick mucus while toxicity generally creates thin, clear mucus.

Thick Mucus

Thick, white or clear mucus is associated with an imbalance in Kapha and can often be traced back to rich diet of sweet, heavy and oily foods. Over time, these foods increase kledaka kapha in the stomach which can then aggravate avalambaka kapha in the lungs. The wet, cold, liquid and slimy qualities of avalamabaka kapha leads to respiratory congestion, runny nose, blocked sinuses and phlegm in the lungs and throat. To balance this respiratory ailment, it's important to avoid Kapha provoking foods like sugar, ice cream, cold milk, cheese and fried foods. Instead, favor foods that are dry, light penetrating and hot in quality. These will melt away congestion and dry excess mucus. Pungent aromatics such as cinnamon, ginger, cloves and black pepper, especially when combined with honey, are expectorants and decongestants that help the body spit out, dissolve or dry out mucus. Add some mustard seeds to your next curry and sip on some tulsi tea to breathe easy. Pungent, bitter and astringent tastes also work to balance kapha mucus in the stomach and lungs and will promote comfortable breathing.

Infected Mucus

When mucus is a yellow or green color, generally this means there is an excess of Pitta in the lungs and a possible sign of infection (Pitta is responsible for infection). The quality of this mucus is hot, sharp and penetrating. You will feel this mucus as a burning sensation in your throat at times. To remedy this type of respiratory congestion, it is best to follow a Pitta pacifying diet and lifestyle. Favor pitta pacfiying aromatics and pungents (cardamom, fennel, fresh ginger) and bitter taste (greens or neem if using herbs).

Thin Mucus

Thin or clear mucus is often a sign of cold sinuses, or irritation of the sinus membranes due to toxicity. It is typical of a common cold due to deficiency in autumn. Thin mucus often increases with gas or constipation, due to toxins (ama).

The sinuses need to be kept warm and colon needs to be clear, so if constipation is present, herbs like triphala may be appropriate in some cases. This will gently encourage a bowel motion and cleanse digestive toxins. Sipping on licorice tea is also a powerful remedy for dry, scratchy respiration. Its demulcent properties adds moisture and its expectorant properties helps expel difficult to release phlegm in dry coughs. Sweet, oily and unctuous foods will soothe and lubricate the respiratory tract afflicted by rough Vata.

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COMPUTE MY DIET FOR MUCUS CONGESTION
OR, GET A GENERAL DIET FOR BALANCING MUCUS CONGESTION

Augment your diet with these specially chosen ingredients below which may be useful for 'Mucus Congestion'. Individual results vary depending the cause of your imbalance and by constitution. Please research the ingredients below to find which are most helpful for you, and check with your doctor before making any changes to your health and wellness routine.

These ingredients are contraindicated / may aggravate 'Mucus Congestion'.

Please check with your medical doctor before making any changes to your health & wellness routine, and for the proper use of these products.

RESPIRATORY HEALTH TIPS

DISCLAIMER: The pathogenesis of each person's condition is unique, and so the diet must be fit to the individual and the unique root causes of the condition in your body. The information on this page is for educational purposes only and should not be used to treat a medical condition. It is not a substitute for medical care. Please check with your doctor before making any changes to your health and wellness routine.

Everything you eat has an effect on your body, which Ayurveda categorizes in a simple and easy way, using biocharacteristics (gunas). Biocharacteristics are qualities (like cold and hot) that describe the effect a food or herb has on your body. Cooling foods like cucumber, decrease metabolism. Heating foods like chili pepper, stimulate your body and increase metabolism. For 'Mucus Congestion', you should select foods with the following biocharacteristics. Individual results will vary, based on your body type and the root cause of your imbalance.

Cleanse & Detox:

Burns Toxins

BURNS-TOXINS

An herb that detoxifies by helping your body metabolize toxins, as opposed to eliminating them.

SEE ALL 'BURNS-TOXINS' FOODS / HERBS

Respiratory-Health:

Flushes Sinuses

FLUSHES-SINUSES

An herb that relieves sinus congestion by flushing out mucus.

SEE ALL 'FLUSHES-SINUSES' FOODS / HERBS

,

Decongestant

DECONGESTANT

An herb that reduces mucus production often by restricting blood flow to mucus membranes.

SEE ALL 'DECONGESTANT' FOODS / HERBS

,

Expectorant

EXPECTORANT

Expectorants help you eliminate mucus from the lungs. These herbs often work by increasing the quantity of mucus, or thinning the mucus. Expectorants are indicated when phlegm congests the lower respiratory tract.

SEE ALL 'EXPECTORANT' FOODS / HERBS

Constituents:

Essential Oil

Subtaste:

Aromatic

AROMATIC

Herbs or spices with volatile essential oils that present strong aromas. Aromatic oils shock, refresh and numb tissue, with the end result of relaxing, opening and clearing stagnant fluids in tissues.

SEE ALL 'AROMATIC' FOODS / HERBS

Joyful Belly is a recognized college of biocharacteristics medicine.

HOW TO ADDRESS ISSUES IN STAGE OF DISEASE #2

MUCUS CONGESTION IS IN STAGE OF DISEASE #2 - AFFECTING BLOOD & EMOTIONS

Affecting Blood: Initially, imbalances are localized, often in the digestive tract. As an imbalance grows, it starts to affect your body systemically, via the blood. If you have symptoms in this category it means that your imbalances are starting to spread, have entered the bloodstream, and are now systemic. Pay particular attention to the biocharacteristics, tastes, and doshas out of balance systemically, so you know how to strengthen your body as a whole, and reduce physical stress on your organs. At this stage of imbalance you will begin to experience generalized discomfort, imbalanced emotions, and may develop sensitivities to temperature. It may take several weeks of strict adherence to a specific remedial diet to clear blood level imbalances. Blood cleansing herbs may reduce symptoms. A several day cleanse may shorten the recovery time. (See all disease stages on JB)

GET MY FREE AYURVEDA BODY MAP According to Ayurveda, one or more of the following doshas and biocharacteristics may aggravate 'Mucus Congestion'. If you have an excess of one of these doshas or biocharacteristics below, Ayurveda recommends reducing foods and lifestyle habits that aggravate them. Click on the biocharacteristic to learn what foods and lifestyle habits should be reduced.

Are you prone to a problem with 'Mucus Congestion'? Find your imbalances and create a diet for your Respiratory System by taking the free respiratory health quiz:

TAKE THE RESPIRATORY HEALTH QUIZ

The following symptoms & habits may be related to 'Mucus Congestion'. See your quiz results for a computerized assessment of your body type. Please click on the symptoms below to learn more about them. On average the biocharacteristics of people reporting Mucus Congestion were more aggravated than 81% of other symptoms. From the 5,422 people who reported Mucus Congestion average deviation in biocharacteristic levels were the following:

Risk Factors of Mucus Congestion

Complications of Those Reporting Mucus Congestion

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