Lung The respiratory organs of humans and some higher animals are located in the chest cavity, one on the left and one on the left, connected to the bronchi, the left lung has two lobes, and the right lung has three lobes. Mainly composed of alveoli.
Everyone knows the importance of the lungs, once the lungs cannot absorb fresh air, the lung function will become If it is poor, it will affect the circulation of qi and blood, and even induce various diseases.
The lungs of the human body are very delicate, smoking or exposure to second-hand smoke is exposed to high pollution environments, bad mood bacteria and viruses Excessive dryness may damage the lungs and even increase the risk of lung diseases, including tuberculosis, pneumonia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer. Many people usually know that they have lung discomfort when they cough, but did you know that the sputum you cough up can also reflect the health of your lungs?
01
How is phlegm formed?
Coughing is a way for the human lungs to protect themselves. Sputum is mainly formed in the respiratory tract The goblet cells inside are secreted by glands, and the main function of goblet cells in the respiratory tract is secretion.
Continuously secrete liquid to keep the respiratory tract moist, and at the same time can adhere to pathogenic bacteria and dust in the inhaled air, Finally, sputum is formed and excreted from the body, so it protects the respiratory tract and maintains the health of the respiratory system.
When the human body has respiratory inflammation, such as bacterial infection, viral infection, inflammation stimulates the human respiratory system, resulting in cup The number of inflammatory cells secreted increases, and these secretions also contain some inflammatory cells, which can kill pathogens entering the body and form thick phlegm to be excreted from the body.
There is a A layer of cilia, these lead hairs will constantly swing to remove various secretions in the airway out of the airway through the swing of cilia. Usually, goblet cells without inflammation in the respiratory tract have less secretion and less sputum, so spitting is rare, but when inflammation occurs, the secretion will increase and a large amount of sputum will be formed.
02
When there is a lung disease, the sputum will “notify” you first: cough up 6 kinds of sputum, seek medical screening as soon as possible
1. Chronic bronchitis: mucus sputum
The sputum at this time is generally white, gray or mucus foamy sputum, and it is lighter during the day when you get up in the morning, but there will be bursts when you sleep at night. Paroxysmal cough or expectoration.
If the cough is severe, it will cause the capillaries of the respiratory mucosa to rupture, which may cause a small amount of hemoptysis, resulting in sputum containing bloodshot.
2. Pneumonia : abnormal color of sputum Leading to pneumonia, it is likely to show frequent coughing, but this is a way of self-protection, but it still irritates the airways and secretes more phlegm.
Under normal circumstances, the color of sputum is also different in pneumonia caused by different pathogens, such as the lungs After pneumonia and streptococcal infection, rust-coloredsputum.
3. Lung abscess: phlegm and smelly
If the lungs are infected by pathogens, leading to lung lesions, especially lung cysts, the early stage is pneumonia and cysts gradually appear, and the initial stage will be Sudden persistent high fever, even up to 40°C, bloody sputum, accompanied by slight hemoptysis.
The disease progresses beyond One week, lung abscess and ulceration may appear, resulting in increased sputum, and 300-500 ml of sputum can be coughed up every day, and the sputum is pus-like and smelly.
4. Bronchiectasis: thick yellow-green sputum
When inflammation repeatedly stimulates the bronchi, it is easy to cause damage to the structure of the bronchial wall, leading to dilation of the bronchi. At this time, the lumen of the bronchi become larger, the bronchial wall becomes thicker and less elastic, and poor sputum is more likely to gather in the dilated bronchi and cannot be discharged, and the amount of sputum is very large.
In the early stage, patients may have white phlegm, and if appropriate, yellow phlegm, yellow purulent sputum, Yellow-green purulent sputum.
5. Pulmonary tuberculosis: bloodshot sputum, low fever
Pulmonary tuberculosis is the infection of the human lungs by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Patients will cough frequently, which may damage the lung tissue continuously. cause abnormal bleeding.
As long as you observe carefully , you will find that a lot of bloody sputum is coughed up, and the patient may even be in a state of high fever for a long time, so it must be treated in time to avoid infection.
6. Lung cancer: bloody sputum
A cough with bloodshot sputum may also be a symptom of lung cancer. Lung cancer patients manifest dry cough in the early stage after the onset of the disease. With the continuous growth of the tumor, it will also stimulate the An abnormal production of phlegm in the body.
If the tumor invades the lung tissue or the blood vessels on the surface of the tumor rupture, the outflowing blood will be accompanied by sputum The liquid is excreted from the body together or the sputum with blood streaks appears, which gradually turns into hemoptysis, sputum with shortness of breath, chest pain and other symptoms. In general, once the amount of sputum, the character of the sputum, and the color of the sputum change, you must go to the hospital for an examination in time.
03
Can you swallow phlegm?
It is best not to swallow sputum, so as not to affect the digestive tract infection. As mentioned above, sputum is formed by secretions of respiratory tract inflammation or inhaled dust and other substances in the respiratory tract, and there are microorganisms or other harmful substances in it that are swallowed, which may cause unnecessary infections.
Especially the sputum coughed up by tuberculosis patients contains a large amount of Mycobacterium tuberculosis which is swallowed and stays in the intestinal tract It may cause intestinal tuberculosis, so spit it out, but be careful not to spit anywhere, try to wrap it in paper towels, and handle it carefully to avoid the spread of pathogens.