What is Chest Congestion? Causes, Symptoms, Treatment | Vicks (2024)

FAQs

What causes chest congestion symptoms? ›

Chest congestion can be a symptom of an acute illness or a chronic underlying health condition. Causes of chest congestion can include flu, asthma, and COPD. Often, people experience chest congestion as a symptom of an acute illness. Acute infections may also cause other symptoms, such as fever or headache.

Symptoms usually start to go away within seven days to two weeks if you don't have an underlying condition like chronic pulmonary disease. Medicines like decongestants may also loosen mucus and ease other symptoms.

Medications such as antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, and bronchodilators to open your airways. A mucus-clearing device to help you cough up fluid more easily. Oxygen therapy so you can breathe better. Pulmonary rehab, an exercise program that can help you breathe more easily and exercise more.

If your excess mucus isn't going away, it means your body is still fighting an infection or you are still being exposed to something irritating like an allergen. For relief, try drinking more water, using a humidifier, and taking over-the-counter decongestants.

Hydration: Drink plenty of water when you're congested. It'll help loosen the mucus. If you're dehydrated, the mucus will become dehydrated too. That makes it thicker and harder to get out of your body.

Guaifenesin is used to help clear mucus or phlegm (pronounced flem) from the chest when you have congestion from a cold or flu. It works by thinning the mucus or phlegm in the lungs.

Chest congestion medications, like Robitussin and Mucinex, come in liquid, tablet, and capsule forms. Both work for multiple symptoms although some people may prefer Robitussin for a cough and Mucinex for congestion. Robitussin and Mucinex are two over-the-counter remedies for chest congestion.

Vicks products cannot cure the cold or flu, but they can help relieve chest congestion symptoms so you can feel better while your body heals from the cold or flu virus. When you have chest congestion symptoms, the mucus build-up in your lungs can become very thick and dense.

What is the best position to sleep in to clear your lungs? ›

Lying prone can improve breathlessness and help get more oxygen into the body. Lying prone can also help your cough to be more effective. This helps with clearing out any secretions that are in your chest.

Drinking plenty of fluids, such as water, tea, or broth, can help thin out the mucus and make coughing easier. You can also use a humidifier or steamy shower to help loosen the mucus. Practice airway clearance techniques such as breathing exercises or chest physiotherapy.

Does spitting out phlegm help you get better? Coughing is one way the body gets rid of infection, but when it comes to spitting and swallowing phlegm, neither method will likely help a person recover quicker.

GUAIFENESIN (gwye FEN e sin) treats cough and chest congestion. It works by thinning and loosening mucus, making it easier to clear from the head, throat, and lungs. It belongs to a group of medications called expectorants.

Does coughing up mucus mean infection? No, coughing up mucus does not always indicate an infection. While an infection is one possible cause for coughing up mucus, other causes can include acid reflux, allergies, environmental factors, lung disease, or heart failure.