Thin, thick, green, yellow, runny. Now that many have started school and kindergarten, the annual round of sniffing and coughing also begins, to the great frustration of many parents. But how sick does the child really have to be to be kept home from nursery and school? At least you can’t see it on the snot, says Torgrim Fuhr, head of the ear-nose-throat department at the University Hospital in Northern Norway. – The Norwegian Institute of Public Health does not distinguish between the color of your snot when you have a cold, and the fact that you have a snot is not in itself a reason why you should stay at home or not go to nursery. Myth that you can distinguish by color Many people may have heard that transparent snot means that you are healthy or just have allergies? And that if you have green or yellow snot, it means that you should probably keep the child at home. It is a myth, says the superior. – You cannot distinguish it from snot by its appearance. You may have a major viral infection even if it is clearly snot. Head of department Torgrim Fuhr. – But what gives snot its color then? – You have natural bacteria in the front parts of the nose, skin bacteria that live there too, which are not pathogenic. If you have increased snot production, some of these bacteria may have increased access to nutrients. It can give color to the snot. But usually thick and green mucus could indicate that you have an infection of some kind. White blood cells that flow in to help the immune system can also be part of the explanation for the colour. Not very contagious More important than the color is the general condition and cough. Because coughing is what spreads infection. – You must stay at home if you are ill, or if the children have a reduced general condition and have not slept well because of a cough, or if your eyes run and your ears hurt. – But in itself that they are a bit snotty, we should tolerate that. The general manager of Alsgård FUS nursery, Kristin Engen, confirms that children who are snotty are welcome in the nursery. EVERYDAY: General manager of Alsgård FUS nursery, Kristin Engen, says that snot is part of everyday life for nursery staff. Photo: Tverlandet photo club – There are many children who are snotty now that we are starting a new year. But fortunately the covid rules have disappeared, says Engen. Fuhr believes it is positive to be exposed to a little snot and bacteria, as long as you are otherwise healthy. It’s not particularly contagious either. – It depends on how much you cough and the droplet zone of infection, but generally just that you are snotty, if you don’t get this snot on someone, then you don’t infect anyone. Tears and tears But it’s not just allergies and infections that make us reach for the kleenex box now that we’re heading into a slightly colder season. Do you have e.g. noticed that you have to cheat if you are very moved? Or when you go skiing and get wind in your eyes? – A lot of people don’t think that your tears are also quite rich and a pretty good amount during a day. And your tears therefore enter through the face and come out through the nose, and are part of what you swallow. – So if for a period you experience an increased amount of snot, it may actually be the amount of tears. Renate Reinsve had to wipe a tear on stage after receiving the Best Actress Prize for “Verdens Verste Menneske”. It is not inconceivable that she had to resort to the cheating paper as well. Photo: CHRISTOPHE SIMON / AFP Swallowing a pint of snot Although it sometimes feels like there are endless amounts of snot leaving the body, most of it enters the body. You usually swallow a pint of snot a day. – So you actually produce quite large quantities. The mucous membrane is made so that there are tiny cilia that constantly whip it from the front to the back against the throat. When it has reached far enough in the back of the throat, you trigger a swallowing reflex, or throat thing. Then it is the stomach acid that neutralizes the snot. Picking buses is something that should be done with care. Photo: SCANSTOCKPHOTO Eating busses Have you heard that busses can strengthen the immune system? It is not so certain. Since you already swallow a pint of snot a day, there is not much new you can add by eating busses. – The only thing you add new is your own dirty bacteria that you may have from others, which you put in your nose and then in your mouth. And if you also have badly trimmed nails, you can scratch yourself and create sores on your nose. Wounds can become infected. – You may not need to teach the children that you shouldn’t pick your nose at all, but you can teach them to use paper, and wash their hands first, and throw it away instead of swallowing it. Increased amount of snot can come from the eyes, says senior doctor Torgrim Fuhr. Here is Marcus Hellner from the ski WC in 2011. Photo: Larsen, Håkon Mosvold / SCANPIX Children do not need to be tested But to conclude: Snow is not a stress. – As long as the general condition is good, the children can be sent to the nursery, says nursery manager Kristin Engøy. – The most important thing is good communication and dialogue. We call if we see that the child is not quite fit, it is important to have good parental cooperation. These are the corona rules in the kindergarten. A runny and stuffy nose is now one of the symptoms to watch out for in connection with covid-19. The recommendations that apply now are nevertheless: Sick people should not be in the nursery or at school Good hand and cough hygiene Good cleanliness and good ventilation Children and pupils with symptoms no longer need to be tested. Source: UDIR.
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Green snot does not necessarily mean that you are ill – news Nordland
