Where does snot come from?

After being sick for about 3 1/2 weeks now, I asked myself "where does all this snot come from?" as I go through yet another box of kleenex blowing my nose every 15 minutes or so.

Well, according to the CDC when your nose and sinus get infected with germs your nose makes clear mucus in an attempt (feeble in my case) to wash away said germs. This mucus is clear. After a couple days your body’s immune cells fight back. Apparently this battle changes the mucus to a white or yellow color - I have no idea why. This is what the CDC writes next: “As the bacteria that live in the nose grow back, they may also be found in the mucus, which changes the mucus to a greenish color.” Which begs the question, if they’re normal, happy nose bacteria then why isn’t my snot always green?

So, lucky for me, Dr. Rod Moser has the answer in this post from WebMD: “After sitting in a congested nasal passage all night, mucous becomes stagnant....just like a green pond.”

Interesting, if not absolutely foul to think about. But Dr. Moser does go on to drill home the message that green snot isn't bad news. And just because it’s green doesn’t mean you need to bully your Doctor into prescribing you or your child antibiotics.

Still, where does the color green come from? Well. It comes from the color wheel. A New Scientist article explains that two of the common types of human nasal bacteria Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas pyocyanea take on a golden yellow and blue hue respectively. Mix them together and let them fester in a congested nasal passage and what do you get? Green snot. It’s practically art.

Now isn’t that a truly enlightened view of my head cold? LOL