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_This is an article from Curious Kids, a series for children. The Conversation is asking kids to send in questions they’d like an expert to answer. All questions are welcome – serious, weird

or wacky!_ ------------------------- > WHY DOES MY SNOT TURN GREEN WHEN I HAVE A COLD? – XAVIER, AGE 8, > CLIFTON HILL, VICTORIA. ------------------------- That’s a great question

Xavier! The first thing for us to think about is what _is_ snot? When we are healthy, snot is just what scientists call mucus. Mucus is a gel that lines our nose, our intestines, and even

our lungs. It’s very sticky and slippery. This is because mucus is designed to help keep the germs and bugs out of our body. Any bugs that try and get in, should just get stuck in this mucus

and then blown out or swallowed (where they would mostly be destroyed by our powerful stomach acids). ------------------------- _ READ MORE: CURIOUS KIDS: WHY DO TEARS COME OUT OF OUR EYES

WHEN WE CRY? _ ------------------------- Sometimes this doesn’t work and the germs infect our body. A cold is caused by a virus, and these like to get inside of our cells and make us sick.

When we get sick our immune system needs to get rid of the virus and make us better. OUR IMMUNE SYSTEM Our immune system is made up of lots of different parts. One part is a special cell

called a “neutrophil”. Neutrophils are a type of cell called a “phagocyte”. Phagocyte means a cell that eats things. Neutrophils like to eat bugs, or our own cells that are damaged by

infections like viruses that cause a cold. When we have a cold, neutrophils are one of the cells that help us get better. These neutrophils work very quickly, but they don’t live for very

long. Once they die we need to get rid of them, and they end up in our snot. Neutrophils have different ways of helping us get better. They can eat bugs, they can send out nets and catch

bugs, or they can send out chemicals to kill bugs. All of these processes use a special chemical called MPO (that stands for myeloperoxidase but don’t worry, most scientists just call it

MPO). ------------------------- _ READ MORE: CURIOUS KIDS: DO ASTRONAUTS GET SPACE SICK WHEN THEY TRAVEL FROM EARTH TO THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION? _ ------------------------- MPO is a

chemical that makes a type of bleach. Just like you might use bleach when you are cleaning your home, this bleach kills infections. Neutrophils release MPO to kill any germs that it has

eaten, or sends it out with its nets, or as one of the chemicals that it releases to kill any bugs. MPO contains a green colour. And because the dead neutrophils end up in our snot, the MPO

in the neutrophils makes our snot look green. Lots of people think green snot means you are really sick, or that you need antibiotics to treat your infection. But this is not true. Green

snot is actually a sign that our immune system is working and that we are getting better. ------------------------- _Hello, curious kids! Have you got a question you’d like an expert to

answer? Ask an adult to send your question to us. They can:_ _* Email your question to [email protected] * Tell us on Twitter_ _Please tell us your name, age and which city

you live in. You can send an audio recording of your question too, if you want. Send as many questions as you like! We won’t be able to answer every question but we will do our best._