Why do stuffy noses get more productive when you’re recovering from getting sick? If the point of a runny nose is to expel the bad germs through mucus, then wouldn’t it make more sense for them to get less productive as you recover because the bad germs are mostly gone?

Question

Why do stuffy noses get more productive when you’re recovering from getting sick? If the point of a runny nose is to expel the bad germs through mucus, then wouldn’t it make more sense for them to get less productive as you recover because the bad germs are mostly gone?

In: 14

Answer 1

They don’t always get more productive later in an illness, but what you may have been experiencing is post-viral acute rhinosinusitis. In this scenario, a viral upper respiratory tract infection (a cold) sets up a more prolonged inflammatory process in your sinuses, leading to them discharging for a more prolonged period after the initial illness has cleared up. The mucus doesn’t really exist just to expel bad germs, but it’s the consequence of the inflammation caused by the illness.