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When you come down with a common cold or flu, you might see green mucus after you blow your nose. But what does green mucus mean?

A change in the color of your snot may signal a harmless shift in your body — or it could be a sign of infection. In other words, when your mucus is suddenly green, or any other color than it typically is, don’t ignore it.

Here’s what the color of your mucus may be revealing about your health.

What Is Mucus (Snot)?

Mucus is a sticky, thick liquid that lines your nose and other parts of your body. It’s a vital bodily function that helps prevent infection.

Most people only think of mucus as the runny stuff in their nose when they’re sick or dealing with allergies. But you can also find mucus in your:

• Eyes
• Intestines
• Lungs
• Mouth
• Reproductive organs
• Sinuses
• Stomach

The respiratory, digestive, and reproductive tracts contain mucus-making glands. Your body never stops producing mucus, which is always at work behind the scenes.

What you call mucus depends on where it is in the body. For instance:

• Phlegm — Mucus your body produces in the lungs.
• Snot and boogers — Mucus only in your nose.

What Does Mucus Do?

A critical part of your body’s ecosystem, mucus helps keep you safe in many ways. Some of the most important functions of mucus include:

• Blocking germs — The air you breathe may contain bacteria or dangerous particles. Mucus stops harmful irritants from entering your lungs and causing infections.
• Housing antibodies — The antibodies in your mucus stop bacteria, viruses, and foreign substances, so they don’t make you sick or cause harm. Nasal mucus has antibodies that can fight infections in your sinuses.
• Moving food through your esophagus — Mucus lubricates the lining of your esophagus, preventing food from causing irritation.
• Protecting your stomach lining — Mucus membranes line your stomach to protect this organ. Mucus also keeps digestion normal, helping you avoid stomach pain.
• Trapping irritants — Since mucus is sticky, it can trap dirt, germs, and bacteria before they enter your body. When you cough, you might expel the mucus that contains those trapped irritants.

If you do come down with an infection, mucus is on the front lines of defense. It plays a crucial role in helping you get better faster, too.

What Is Snot Made Of?

Mucus or snot contains water, salt, antibodies, and antiseptic enzymes. These special enzymes fight foreign bacteria or viruses that might enter your body.

Your body can produce more than a liter of mucus a day. That might seem like a lot, but mucus production protects your organs and ensures your body functions normally.

Why Mucus Changes Color

You may not notice your mucus much until it looks different. Mucus is usually clear or white, but you can also have yellow, green, or orange mucus.

When your environment causes debris to build up in your mucus, the color can change. Nosebleeds and dust can also darken your snot. If you deal with allergies, you likely see thicker, discolored mucus, too.

But infection is the most common reason for the changing color of your snot, meaning you’re sick and your body is fighting to feel better.

Typical snot color progression

When you’re ill, your immune system sends extra white blood cells — your body’s first defense against bacteria and viruses — to your mucus. This can cause your mucus to slowly change color, progressing from white to yellow to green:

• White or cloudy — A cold or mild infection can make your snot darker than normal. This change is a sign that your body is starting to fight a new infection.
• Yellow — If an infection worsens, your snot will continue to darken. The yellow color comes from an extra buildup of white blood cells. Yellow mucus can signal a bacterial or viral respiratory infection.
• Green — As your body fights a more long-lasting or severe infection, your mucus can turn green. This happens from white blood cells, debris, and iron-containing enzymes that have built up in your snot over the course of the infection.

Once an infection has run its course, your mucus will slowly return to its normal color.

Mucus color is only one clue to an underlying health issue. It can’t tell your doctor whether your body’s fighting a bacterial or viral infection. They’ll have to run tests to find the root of the illness.

Mucus Color Meanings

The color of your mucus can still give you important information about your health.

Black mucus

Black mucus shows that you’ve inhaled dust, smoke, or chemicals. There’s typically no need to take action if your snot is black, but call your doctor right away if you cough up bloody mucus.

Brown mucus

Brown mucus can come from old blood — so if you recently had a nosebleed or a dry nose, your mucus may turn brown. But if you smoke, your mucus can also turn brown from tobacco and chemicals.

Green mucus

Green mucus shows up when your body is fighting a more severe or long-lasting infection. It’s from a buildup of white blood cells and enzymes.

Other symptoms typically accompany green mucus. Contact your doctor to determine the kind of infection you have and to manage next steps.

Orange mucus

Like with brown mucus, old blood can cause orange mucus. But it’s often a sign that your nose is dry. Taking a hot shower, running a humidifier, or using a nasal saline spray can help moisten a dry nose.

Pink or red mucus

Blood, such as from a burst nasal blood vessel or a very recent nosebleed, is the most common cause of pink or red mucus. If this is the case, gently blow your nose.

But your nose could be dry, too. Use steam or an over-the-counter (OTC) nasal spray to prevent a dry nose.

White or clear mucus

Clear mucus is a sign that your body is healthy, functioning normally, and hydrated.

White mucus isn’t always cause for concern, but it can indicate your body is sending extra white blood cells to fight an infection. If you notice a lot of white mucus, monitor your other symptoms.

Yellow mucus

Yellow mucus appears at the start of a new infection and means your white blood cells are working overtime. Once your body notices an infection, it sends extra white blood cells to your sinuses. Keep an eye out for other symptoms, and contact your doctor if they worsen.

Home Remedies for Congestion and Green Mucus

There’s no cure for green mucus or congestion, but you can use these strategies to relieve your symptoms:

• Blow your nose — This is the quickest way to rid your nose of green mucus and clear your nasal passages. Just make sure to blow your nose gently to avoid bursting a blood vessel.
• Sip a hot drink — The steam from a hot beverage can loosen mucus and help relieve congestion.
• Stay hydrated — Drinking plenty of water helps thin mucus, clearing extra snot from your nose.
• Take over-the-counter medication — Some OTC drugs can relieve congestion and stop infection symptoms. But taking them for more than three days can have the opposite effect, making your congestion worse.
• Try a nasal saline solution or neti pot — Rinsing your sinuses can add moisture back to your nose and clear clogged nasal passages. Make sure to only use distilled or sterile water in nasal irrigation devices.
• Use a humidifier — Adding moisture to the air can stop or break up your mucus production.

If these methods don’t work or your congestion lasts for an extended period of time, it may be time to see your doctor.

When to See a Doctor

Most of the time, you don’t need to make a visit to your doctor’s office just because your mucus changes color. But in some cases, discolored mucus can be a sign of a more serious health issue.

See your doctor if:

• You have green mucus with other symptoms, including chest pain, quickened breathing, or shortness of breath. These could be signs of pneumonia.
• Black snot is coming from your nose, but you haven’t breathed in dust or pollutants. This could be a sign of a fungal infection.
• You don’t feel better after 10 days with an infection.
• You’re coughing up a lot of mucus. This could signal more serious lung problems.
• You notice a lot of red, brown, or black mucus when you cough. This may be a sign of a lung infection or pneumonia.

FAQs

Does green snot mean I have an infection?

When white blood cells build up in your nose, especially overnight, your mucus can turn green. This is because white blood cells produce green enzymes that fight off the infection.

Green mucus might be drier or thicker than usual — another sign that your body is fighting off infection. Dead white blood cells can make mucus thicker.

Mucus that turns green could be a sign of an infection, but the color of your mucus isn’t enough to diagnose you. Take note of how long you’ve seen green snot and any other symptoms you have.

Why do I have so much mucus?

It’s normal for your body to produce a large amount of mucus a day. And when you’re sick, mucus production ramps up even more.

Mucus can feel impossible to clear when you’re sick. Since infection can also cause inflammation in your nose, it might take longer for the mucus to clear. Although this process can be frustrating, it’s an important part of healing from a stubborn viral or bacterial infection.

Your body knows what to do when you have extra mucus, which is why you cough or need to blow your nose more. Even though inflammation can make blowing your nose more difficult, it’s still one of the best ways to stop congestion.

Is swallowing mucus bad?

There’s no harm in swallowing snot. After all, mucus lines your body.

Acid in your stomach breaks down the mucus you swallow. That process also eliminates any bacteria and viruses trapped in the mucus.

Swallowing mucus won’t make you sicker either. If anything, it helps you avoid mucus buildup.

Why does my mucus smell bad?

Your mucus might start to smell after you come down with an infection. Some bacterial infections, including sinusitis, can produce foul-smelling odors. The infection causes a buildup of bacteria in your mucus, making the smell worse.

Mucus can smell from foods and medications, too. Certain medical conditions can also give mucus a distinct, unpleasant smell. But if you notice pain or other symptoms alongside smelly mucus, talk to your doctor.