Mucus

From Freepedia

Mucus is a slippery secretion of the lining of various membranes in the body (mucous membranes). Mucus aids in the protection of the lungs by trapping foreign particles that enter the nose during normal breathing. Additionally, it prevents tissues from drying out.

Mucus is made by goblet cells in the mucous membranes that cover the surfaces of the membranes. It is made up of mucins and inorganic salts suspended in water.

In the digestive system, mucus is used as a lubricant for materials which must pass over membranes for example food passing down the esophagus. In the respitory system, it catches unknown matter and tries to prevent it from entering the body, especially in the nose. In the reproductive system, mucus aids the male penis in entering the female vagina during intercourse.

Mucus is a viscous colloid containing antiseptic enzymes (such as lysozyme) and immunoglobulins.

Increased mucus production in the respiratory tract is a symptom of many common diseases, such as the common cold. The presence of mucus in the nose and throat is normal, but increased quantities can impede comfortable breathing and must be cleared by blowing the nose or expectorating phlegm from the throat. Among the components of nasal mucus are tears.

Dried nasal mucus

Dried nasal mucus is partially solidified mucus from the nose. Dried nasal mucus forms when the mucus traps dust and other particles in the air. Mucus dries around the particle and, much like a pearl forming in an oyster, hardens into dried nasal mucus. Since catching foreign particles is one of the main functions of nasal mucus, the presence of dried nasal mucus is a good indicator of a properly functioning nose (as opposed to a "runny nose", which indicates illness). See also Nose-picking.

Booger

Booger is an American slang term for dried nasal mucus; the British form is bogey or snot.

Booger is a word that has scholars baffled as to its etymology. Since it has always been considered semi-vulgar or at least childish, it has been used in few written sources. Furthermore, in the past the word booger has been used to mean many things, and has often overlapped with the terms boogie, bogey, and bugger. The earliest usage of the word is as an alternate spelling of the vulgarism bugger. Booger was first said to be slang for "dried mucus" in the 1892 Dialect Notes; boogie was said to mean the same thing in the 1891 Dictionary of American Regional English. Its appearance in slang dictionaries indicates that it had probably been use for some time in the United States before the 1890s. Both books said that mainly "schoolchildren" used the words.

By the middle of the twentieth century, both booger and boogie were commonly being used to mean dried mucus. As late as the 1970s, both words seem to have been (relatively) acceptable. Since then, however, booger has apparently become more common. This may be due to its appearance in legitimate print media: Bill Watterson claims to be the first cartoonist to use the word booger in a syndicated comic strip, while Dave Barry has pioneered its use in newspaper columns, both in the 1980s.

The hardened mucus that forms in the eyes during sleep is sometimes referred to as "eye boogers". (See sleep.)