50 Ways To Make Your Nose Stop Running
Having a runny nose is never any fun - whether it's simply runny or stuffed up as well, it can give you a headache, mean you have to duck off repeatedly to find a tissuebox and get a bit red in the face. So how can you get rid of a stuffy nose without too much work so you can continue on with your day without feeling absolutely awful?
Here are a few tips you can try out - just remember that different ones will work depending on why your nose is runny (sinuses, cold weather, flu), so be sure to try a few different ones.
- Add menthol, tea tree and eucalyptus (or one of these) to a bowl of hot steaming water. Then cover your head with a towel and inhale.
- Almond oil. A drop or two in each nostril can help stop runny nose.
- Aniseed lollies or fresh can help slow a runny nose.
- Antihistamines. These can often help clear up a runny or itchy nose.
- Apply pressure ten times in a row to one side of your nose, to close the nostril. This is a pressure point and can help relieve sinus.
- Apply pressure ten times in a row to the area directly beneath your inner eye. This is another pressure point.
- Avoid air conditioning. The dry air will dry your nose out and increase the runny nose.
- Avoid allergy aggravators such as sodium benzoate, which is found in some soft drinks.
- Avoid coffee and caffeine and anything else that will dehydrate you.
- Avoid milk and chocolate as they will make it worse.
- Avoid pets as these can aggravate the issue.
- Blow your nose. Not blowing and sniffing can make it worse. Get it all out. But be gentle - blowing too hard and too often can make it worse, too!
- Breastmilk squirted in the nose thins out mucous and helps relieve congestion.
- Check for mould. Mildew in your home can cause allergic reactions.
- Chew gum. The action of the teeth helps the nasal muscles and can relieve a runny nose.
- Cinnamon is a great addition to your diet to decrease a clogged nose.
- Cloves, in any form or mixed with other herbs are good for a runny nose.
- Coconut oil. A small amount in the nostrils, then the head tilted back so the liquid can run down the nose can help a great deal.
- Dab a little Vicks Vaporub under each nostril. Inhale to help clear your nose.
- Do a handstand. Being upside down helps take pressure off the nasal muscles.
- Drink plenty of water to help your system flush itself out.
- Eat hot food. Spicy food will help your body get rid of toxins faster by making your nose runnier and your eyes water - get it over and done with fast!
- Exercise releases adrenaline and helps slow a runny nose.
- Find the cause. Whooping cough, stress, exposure to cigarette smoke can often cause a runny nose.
- Get fresh air - it's better for your nose and isn't as dirty and full of germs or irritants.
- Ginger. Chewing some raw ginger will help drain your nose.
- Grape seed extract in pill form can help relieve symptoms.
- Honey & lemon or lime. Mix this drink up with warm water and take it to help relieve a runny nose.
- Hot herbal teas. Ginger and mint are good choices.
- Insert rolled up balls of tissue in the nostrils to more easily catch any runs.
- Keep away from allergens. Dust, pollen and other allergens can increase your reaction, so steer clear till you feel better.
- Keep your neck and head warm. Cold will cause a nose to run more.
- Massage your earlobes - in the area where you'd get a standard ear piercing. Do this for ten seconds on each ear.
- Mix 5-6 drops of onion oil with a teaspoon of vegetable oil and place it in the nose.
- Mustard oil. Inhale a mix of oil and hot water throughout the day.
- Press in the small cleft on your upper lip, directly under the nose for 30 seconds. Repeat every 15 minutes.
- Sage. Taken mixed with food, honey or in a tea, is a great decongestant [not recommended while pregnant/breastfeeding].
- Salt water gargle. Soothes the throat and relieves a sore nose.
- Saline drops. You can buy squirts from the shop or make your own salt water mix at home. Sniff, inhale or squirt the mixture up your nose.
- Sleep propped up. This helps you avoid the mucous running down the throat to cause coughs and ear aches.
- Sleep with a humidifier in the room. Dry air makes a runny nose worse.
- Soak a cloth in hot water and apply over your nose to help relieve pressure and dilate blood vessels.
- Splash cold water around your nose and the inside edge of the nostrils to cool it and stop it getting too dry.
- Sniff some eucalyptus oil to clear a blocked nose. Remember - it's poisonous and should be kept out of reach of children!
- Take a hot shower. The heat will help clear out the mucous and also help relieve a sore dry nose.
- Thyme leaves (dried) can be ground into a powder and inhaled or added to hot steamy water.
- Turmeric will increase nasal discharge and help clear it.
- Use a 'Neti Pot'. These are a great decongestant.
- Vasline. A small amount rubbed under the nose helps slow down the runniness.
- Vitamin C. Nature's natural antihistamine.
Comments
Greenlily from Philippines on February 07, 2014:
What a long list! I've actually proven some of them to be really effective.