When a person is suffering from a cold or flu, they try every possible way to get rid of a blocked nose to breathe freely again, and blowing their nose is one of the most common practices.
According to CNN, experts have warned that blowing the nose is helpful “only” when it is done correctly; otherwise, it can worsen cold symptoms.
Dr. Peter Filip, a rhinologist and skull base surgeon at Rush University Medical Centre in Chicago, said that the human nose creates 1 to 2 litres of mucus daily, and when a person is sick, the nose thickens mucus to trap viruses. Blowing the nose “gives you temporary relief, but there are more effective ways of clearing that mucus and helping in the long run.”
“While some mucus came out, there is some effect of pushing mucus back into the sinuses in a backward direction where you don’t want it to go. It’s possible that could cause worsening of an infection,” he added.
Experts have warned that the relief of a few minutes could lead to some worse effects. So, here are five negative impacts of blowing your nose.
Ear Pain
When a person forcefully blows their nose, fluid from their sinuses can rush into their ears through a small Eustachian tube connecting the back of the nose with the ear. The blow can cause the eardrum to rupture, leading to an ear infection.
Nosebleeding
Forceful blowing can damage nose blood vessels and cause nosebleeds. Fillip said, “Excess nose blowing many times a day can cause further irritation of the inside of the nose, which leads to more swelling of the lining of the nose and even nosebleeds.”
Orbital Fracture
Experts warned that there have been cases when people blew their noses so hard that they caused an orbital fracture resulting in eye swelling and affecting the vision too.
