Tips to help reduce inflammation, mucus, and coughing

Coughing is a fact of life with SGS. Your airway has scar tissue instead of healthy mucosa. In your airway, the mucus gets stuck in the region of the scar tissue, meaning it becomes thick and can potentially harbour bacterial infections and build up into a mucus plug (see next section). Inflammation is also often an issue for airway stenosis patients which can exacerbate the issue. Fortunately, there are some things you can immediately do to help with this.

Diet

What you eat has a massive impact on your breathing – both the inflammation and mucus elements. You can search on the internet for the most current advice, but generally:

Eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, especially:
- Green leafy vegetables – such as kale, spinach, cabbage, water cress, romaine lettuce, Swiss chard, arugula, and endive
- Dark yellow vegetables – such as pumpkin, yellow peppers, beans, and carrots
- Whole nuts
- Fruits – especially blueberries, pomegranate, orange, cherries, strawberries, apples, and pears
Drink– tea, coffee, and red wine (in moderation), and water (as much as you like)
Cook with and dress salads with extra virgin olive oil.
Fatty fish – e.g. rich in omega 3 fats in sardines, mackerel, salmon
Nuts – especially walnuts.
Apple cider vinegar – one tablespoon in soda water daily

Minimise

Red meat, processed meat, organ meat (kidney, heart, lungs etc) and refined carbohydrates (white flour and white rice)
Sweetened beverages (anything with sugar in particular)
Dairy products and soy – many members notice an immediate difference when cutting out cow’s milk and its associated products (i.e. cream, yoghurt, butter, cheese, and products containing milk derivatives such as milk protein, lactose, whey). Soy milk is often portrayed as an alternative to cow’s milk but can often result in similar mucus effects.