Have you ever heard of a lung cleanse? Do you tend to catch colds a lot in the winter, and you can’t get better quickly like everyone else does?
Are you suffering with any kind of chronic lung disease like COPD or asthma?
If you are, you’re going to want to read today’s article because I’m going to show you 14 ways to ensure you are able to keep your lungs clear in the winter and actually enjoy some of your life before allergy season begins.
I’ll be sharing supplements, activities, and their benefits…so make sure you read closely just in case one of these recommendations is one you should avoid.
For clearer breathing and healthier lungs, keep reading!
Why Do Our Lungs Fill Up With Mucus And Phlegm, Anyway??
You might not know this, and it might sound a little gross…but there are glands in your throat and nose that produce one to two quarts of mucus every single day of your life.
Just think about that for a second. 1 to 2 quarts of mucus. Imagine it in a jar. Gross.
But that’s what your body does to keep you healthy…and believe it or not mucus is actually necessary and important to our survival..
You need a certain amount to make sure your throat doesn’t feel crazy dry, your eyes don’t feel like you have dirt in them, and your joints feel lubricated when you move.
In your nose and throat, the purpose of mucus is to block pathogens, keep your nose and throat moist and comfortable, and to keep out dust and other particles floating in the air.
Your mucus and your nerve endings work together, and when something is trapped in the mucus, you get a funny tickle and either feel the need to cough or sneeze.
That’s a simple way to explain how mucus works in your body everyday.
Usually, the mucus is thin and watery so that it can move through the body with ease. It’s when you notice your snot get thicker that you have a problem.
If it is clear and watery, that’s usually an indication that things are okay or you might have a mild allergy. If it is mucus is thick, yellowish, or greenish, you probably have an infection or something else is happening.
Is There Anything I Can Do About Mucus??
Unfortunately, as long as you’re alive, you’re never going to be able to get rid of mucus entirely. Like I said, you need it to survive.
But if you’re experiencing excess mucus due to being sick, having allergies, or having any kind of other chronic condition, the following ways are the best ones I found to relieve chest congestion even if it’s severe.
Here are the best ways I found to relieve chest congestion and get rid of (or significantly decrease) excess mucus.
- Mullein – The leaves and flowers are used to make syrups and liquids that
people take to relieve their chest congestion. The cool thing about Mullein is
that it is antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and it even helps relieve some
instances of pain.
- Lobelia – Often used with Mullein, this also relieves chest congestion and is
used frequently by people who have COPD and asthma. It has a tendency to warm
you up, so lots of people use it to induce sweating if they are cold or if they
are trying to purposely break a fever. Be careful with lobelia because it
definitely has an effect on your hormones.
- Garlic – If you don’t mind going around smelling like an Italian salad, raw
garlic is probably one of the best remedies for any kind of sickness. It will
knock out a cold faster than anything I’ve ever seen. Whether you’ve got cancer
or a cold, garlic can destroy bacteria and viruses throughout your body.
If eating it raw and chasing it down with cold water or milk is not your idea of fun, you can also buy garlic tinctures from your local health food store. Just make sure if you buy a tincture locally from the store that it is going to work for you. Any garlic you take should feel spicy like ginger once it’s in your mouth.
- Zinc
– Moms of young children are probably already familiar with zinc. It does so
much good. Zinc heals wounds, helps lessen the lifespan of cold, boosts the
immune system, Keeps your eyes and skin healthy, and it should be included in
every healing regimen. To keep it easy, you can get zinc in abundance from
pecans, beef, and beans.
- Mushrooms – The texture of mushrooms might leave something to be desired if you
are a texture person, but thankfully you can get the kind of mushrooms you need
in the supplement.
Not all mushrooms are made alike, so you’re going to want the kind that increase your immune system function. Certain mushrooms make your body produce more T-cells…and T-cells fight infection and disease powerfully. They can even kill cancer!
- Beef Lung – There’s age-old wisdom in the eating animal body parts in order to
improve the health in our corresponding body parts. For example, men should eat cow prostate for
optimal prostate health. In the same way, if you’re struggling with breathing
problems, you’re going to want to get some cow lung.
Now, maybe you don’t want to eat this kind of food in a soup, but you can take it in a supplement. Simply do a Google search on best beef lung, and read the testimonials to make the best decision.
- Vitamin C – Getting more vitamin C is something most of us usually think about
when we catch a cold or have trouble breathing. All you have to do is drink
some orange juice or eat an orange.
If you want to get yourself on a schedule, drink a big glass in the morning and another at night, or eat an orange in the morning and another before you go to bed.
- Steam therapy – One of the most comforting things you can do for your lungs is steam
therapy. Some people like to boil a pot on the stove and then put a towel over
their head and breathe in the steam. I always burn my face when I do that, so I
opt for the shower. It easier, safer, and requires less work on your part.
The less-fussy version is to just put a humidifier in your room. If you want to take it up a notch, put 5 drops of tea tree essential oil in your humidifier so you’ll be breathing in germ-fighting goodness into your lungs while you sleep.
- Controlled coughing – I know this sounds a little silly, but control coughing is when you
called me on purpose come and you do it from your diaphragm, not your throat.
The way it works is this: breathe deeply into your belly, making sure that your belly expands first. Your chest should expand last. if this feels awkward and you don’t know how to do it, practice inhaling this way a few times before you actually try coughing.
To cough, try to cough from the lowest part of your lungs, and then exaggerated the cough and make it last so that you bring up the most mucus possible. Stop once you notice you can’t get up enough mucus.
- Drain your lungs – Kind of like controlled coughing, this puts you in the driver’s seat
when it comes to all that mucus in your lungs. The way you drain your lungs is
by doing controlled coughing in an inverted position.
Your inverted position can be slight, using pillows on your bed to make sure that your hips and legs are higher than your chest. Conversely, some people get on an actual inversion table, turn themselves almost upside down, and they do controlled coughing that way.
- Take a vigorous walk – Exercise always helps bring up mucus that might be settled at the
bottom of your lungs. To take it up a notch, jog or run. If there’s anything in
your lungs, you’re definitely going to cough it up at some point.
- Ginger – Ginger, like garlic is spicy. Most people say it’s flat-out hot when
you eat it raw. Eating ginger raw is the
best way to take it, and you’ll notice instantly that it get rid of nausea,
makes your digestion feel more comfortable, and it ensures you get all the
nutrition out of your food that you want. It is anti-inflammatory, and it will
thin out mucus quickly.
- Air purifier – There are two issues with buying an air purifier that I want to
address right away. The first one is it’s hard to choose a good one. I’d say to
just read reviews and testimonials and make your decision, but even that is
hard. So look for air purifiers that can be used by smokers. Those air
purifiers have multi-step filters and really clean your air – which is what you
need when you are coughing and sneezing all the time.
The second issue is price. They aren’t cheap. An “okay” air purifier will cost you $100. If your lung health is a problem, you might just need to save 20 bucks a month until you can buy an air purifier.
You want to change the air filters in your home, regularly, too. If you’re able, buy better filters.
And just in case you don’t think air quality is that important, I know someone who had a cold for 4 months and just couldn’t get over it. When she bought an air filter, she was over it in 7 days, flat. My final suggestion is this…
- Increase Water intake – Just by doing this, you can make your mucus more like it’s supposed
to be everyday. Drinking more water will send the mucus out and allow you don’t
blow your nose more easily, cough more easily, and be more productive in your
efforts to get all that excess mucus out of your body.
When you are sick, you should be drinking around half your bodyweight in water every day.
You Should Be Able To Clear Up Your Breathing With These Recommendations
At my sickest, I was doing the first seven of these recommendations + controlled breathing at the same time. It took me two weeks to clear up a 2-month cold.
I made these recommendations to friends and family as well, and all of them say that the duration of their colds, flu, pneumonia, bronchitis, allergies, etc. is much shorter.
Now that I am sharing my secrets publicly, I would love for you to try these and then let me know how they work for you. Not being able to breathe is miserable, and not being able to sleep at night because you’re coughing and your nose is stuffy and there’s snot everywhere…well, that’s not much fun, either.
Tell me: how do you clear mucus quickly? Do you have any other strategies, supplements, or remedies that I haven’t mentioned? Share!!
