Kind of a gross topic. Would really appreciate some help. page 2

[Nigel]

Phlegm. Mucus.

I had this trouble years ago. Mine was caused by sinusitis. I went to my doctor because I had a sore throat with it. One week of medication and I was cured. Unlikely to be your problem but it is a thought.

[sbhikes]

It's post-nasal drip. I have had it forever. I stopped eating eggs for breakfast and now I can ride my bicycle 9 miles to work breathing through my nose the entire way with my mouth closed and not coughing.

[Sabre]

Eggs were causing it? Weird...

Thanks for the replies everyone.

I'm continuing to look into this.

[sarasue624]

No one has mentioned non-diet possibilities!

Look at possible mild allergies - what are the walls of your house/apartment made from? Do you have carpeting? Are the airducts in your workplace and house/apartment professionally cleaned regularly? etc. Don't just look for mold, either, you may have a mild allergy to dust mites or other common bugs/materials.

Just a thought.

[patski]

Definitely food allergy related. Get tested if you can.

I also highly recommend a Neti pot.

[Danielfire]

A lot of firefighters get this from smoke, so look at enviromental irritants too.
I am sure you know what works to clear it now so I won't go on, but I always tell the new blokes that a hot shower and clear it there seems the best bet. Hope you find the source

[Sabre]

Definitely food allergy related. Get tested if you can.

I also highly recommend a Neti pot.

A doctor told me an elimination diet is how you test for allergies, and that it starts off with stuff like white rice. Well....I've been doing paleo pretty much for a year and it hasn't cured the problem, though it has helped. Maybe ketosis is worth experimenting with...

[BennettC]

I've been having the same problem bro. Primal diet has helped me tremendously and i certainly havnt stopped eating eggs or milk. Try gurgling a mix of cayanne, salt, warm water. Its been working really well for me. Ive also been trying to eat a lot of garlic. sometimes i throw a little apple cider vinegar in the mix too. hope this helps

[Betorq]

Good suggestions everyone. I had excess mucus for decades, after a deviated septum (flattened) & complete reconstructive nose job many years in my teens, 30 years ago. I was also a HEAVY pot smoker pre-teen til age 23., wake & bake kinda heavy from age 18-23.

It's also worth seeing if mold exists in your walls or in your basement, food alergies & dust mites, pet dander, old or low qual oils, excessive baking with oils or cheeses, its a long list which I have only partially listed here.

Really anything that sets off a histamine response, even if its low level & especially if its multi-factorial from diverse sources, seemingly unrelated, but if it's a constant & cumulatively insulting your immune system, it can do that - cause mucus. It could easily be a combination. Not easy to do a full run down but worthwhile.

I have almost no excess mucus like I used to, but if I over-consume fruit or 'healthy' sweets, I'm hocking luggies & blowing my nose just like the old days... I'd say fruits are about 5% of my food intake now, loads of healthy fats, flesh foods, leafy greens, fermented foods & some pastured local high qual dairy I ferment myself.

Years ago, I was dialed in that it wasn't milk or other dairy troubling me, as in India in 1996 during my 1st trip there I was drinking with my breakfast, delivered right to my front door, raw milk (which I/we boiled as per Ayurvedic directives & added a pinch of powdered ginger & black pepper). But it was super fresh high qual milk: only hours old every day from the teat to my door). I was also eating yogurt w/ my lunchs, so that was twice a day I was eating dairy & I had ZERO phlegm.

Also, from Ayurveda, phlegm is Kapha. You might check out what your doshic constitution & condition is & ought to be for optimal balance. I'm Vata/Pitta so it was totally not in balance for me to have constant, profuse phlegm. If you have Kapha as part of your primary or 2ndary doshic profile, it may not be as easy to fix or eliminate the mucus. But you can certainly reduce it if you track down & eliminate the causes. Neti pot is awesome, it's just one of many excellent parts of the kriya system of hygiene & health maintenance dinacharya practices, from both the Yoga & Ayurveda systems of course: Sea salt in filtered water, alternate between warm & cool water, done in the morning when you brush your teeth etc, always done on an empty stomach before breakfast. Google/You Tube it.

[Primal123]

If you eat a lot of cold or raw food it could be that. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine phlegm may be caused my these, so the recommendation is eating only warm foods or drinking warm soup or tea with raw or cold foods or taking digestive enzymes.

The neti pot is awesome.