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Got A Cold? Don't Blow It!
Posted by Su Avasthi on December 27, 2009 - 11:45pm.

For most of us, it's reflex: When we're congested and our noses are stuffed up, we reach for a tissue and blow.

But medical experts say that blowing your nose when battling a cold or flu is a habit we should try to break. 

According to an article in the New York Times, researchers have found that blowing your nose slows drainage and propels mucus - along with all those unwanted infectious germs - back into the sinus cavities.

Researchers at the University of Virginia studied several cold and flu behaviors and their impact on our bodies. Turns out that coughing and sneezing are relatively harmless, and don't put any undue stress on the nasal cavities.

But blowing one's nose is not quite as benign. 

They found that nose blowing causes a tremendous spike in pressure on the nasal cavities, which reverses the flow of our mucus, and propels it back into the sinuses.

Experts say that during an illness, blowing one's nose sends viruses and bacteria right back into our systems, and even opens the door to further infection. 

So what are we supposed to do? 

An ear, nose and throat expert cited in the aforementioned article suggests that the best way to alleviate congestion is to blow one nostril at a time. That, and decongestants, are the recommended methods to handle congestion. 

Personally, I stay away from decongestants. I only take them when my suffering gets so bad as to actually eclipse the way over-the-counter decongestants often make me feel.

On the other hand, I'm a big fan of neti pots. They are very strange at first. But if I'm supposed to avoid Kleenex the next time a cold strikes, then a neti pot may be the only way to get some much-needed relief.  



<em>Kim.D</em>'s picture
Question of Neti pots
by Kim.D on February 14, 2009 - 3:13pm
If blowing your nose puts the mucus back in your sinuses, wouldn't neti pots do the same thing. It would just be mucus mixed with salt water flushing through. I wonder if that's any better for you. I wonder if this study is sponsored by the decongestant companies and I'm not sure I buy it. We've already banned cold medicine for kids why would we want to encourage it for adults. Hmmmm...
<em>go_green45</em>'s picture
Agree to this Article??
by go_green45 on February 16, 2009 - 8:35pm
Well, when many people have a cold, we all know that they have to use a tissue to clean their nose. We will never want it to drip. When i read this article, I was suprised that we should not be using tissues. Should we really be trusting this. In my opinion we should because it is a thing that might be true. When we have a runny nose, what is in that runny nose are mucus. Although we know that bacteria and other types of things that are not good for us can come inside our bodies which cause a certain sickness that is annoying. Stuffy nose is a certain common thing that we know that this article is talking about. I read that all the viruses and bacteria come right back in even though you blow them out. NETI POTS!! That is some kind of pot that we have to use as a nose drop medicines. i just think that it is kind of weird that we should not be using tissues but the neti pots yes. I would just say to agree with this article. We will just have to see what doctors think about this " runny nose" article!!
<em>NiinjaPers0n13</em>'s picture
huh>>???
by NiinjaPers0n13 on February 16, 2009 - 10:55pm
Cant blow my nose??? that's confusing i think blowing our nose is a natural thing. isn't it. but then again i don't want to be sick for twice the time because of it. i think the article is right if you really think about it blowing your nose sometimes hurts and other times it Doesn't. the artical say that the when you cough and sneer it doesnt affect anything so then we well keep coughing and sneezing but now its time to change our ways. to leave tissues. i agree with "runny nose".
<em>topsites</em>'s picture
Once most of the water is
by topsites on December 9, 2009 - 1:24pm
Once most of the water is out, along with all gunks causing your sinus infection symptoms, blow your nose into a hankie by plugging every one side individually. Blow very smoothly. If you blow too hard you will shoot water back into your sinuses.
<em>www.DropYourAllergies.com</em>'s picture
When a Cold is NOT a Cold.
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<em>kimbie150</em>'s picture
Got A Cold? Don't Blow It
by kimbie150 on December 28, 2009 - 6:29pm
Regarding Got A Cold? Don't Blow It, the title should be Got a Cold?  Watch how you blow it. Su Avasthi, the person who posted this article, starts off by telling we readers not to blow our nose, then, after saying "so what are we supposed to do?"  mentioned that an ear, nose and throat specialist cited in a New York Times article says that we should blow our noses by doing it one nostril at a time.  So we are being advised to blow our nose after all. One thing that the article should have said is when blowing your nose, do so gently, because blowing your nose in a honking fashion (which, I must admit, is what I do) can cause your pressure to elevate, and may also cause blood vessels to burst (sorry for the eww factor here!)
<em>Racykate</em>'s picture
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<em>MiniFridgeMan</em>'s picture
Seems counter intuitive
by MiniFridgeMan on January 10, 2010 - 7:06pm

Sometimes you can't help but blow your nose!

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