HomeHEALTH & WELLNESS6 Home Remedies For Stuffy Nose: Finally Breathe Freely Again

6 Home Remedies For Stuffy Nose: Finally Breathe Freely Again

Remedies For Stuffy Nose: A blocked nose is generally considered harmless – but it is extremely annoying! We’ll tell you six home remedies, for a stuffy nose that let you breathe freely again and are much gentler than nasal sprays. We all know it all too well, especially when the wet and cool season is coming: that uncomfortable feeling when the nose is “closed”, we have to breathe through our mouth laboriously, and suddenly we can only speak in a strangely nasal voice. 

Do you also struggle with a stuffy nose? Instead of reflexively resorting to the nasal spray, you should first try to use gentle home remedies to counter a blocked nose the next time you catch a cold. Because, unlike nasal sprays, natural home remedies gently swell the nose.

Remedies For Stuffy Nose: What Are The Causes Of Nasal Congestion?

Aside from the common cold virus, other causes may be behind the runny nose and nasal congestion. These include allergies, for example, to house dust or animal hair. In this case, one speaks of a so-called allergic runny nose. Other reasons for increased mucus formation in the upper respiratory tract can be smoke, dust, dry air and certain irritants.

In addition, the excessive and regular use of nasal sprays can also lead to permanent nasal congestion. Therefore, you should use nasal drops or spray for a maximum of seven to ten days.

It’s good that tones of home remedies can effectively cause nasal congestion. Here are the six best!

Inhale To Clear The Airways

One of the traditional home remedies for a stuffy nose is inhaling hot steam. The steam helps to loosen the mucus or moisten the nasal mucous membrane. When mixed with salt or essential oils such as eucalyptus, thyme, aniseed or peppermint, inhalation works reliably against colds caused by rhinitis.

How To Inhale Correctly:

To inhale, you can fill a pot or bowl with hot water and then bend over the steaming liquid with a towel over your head. However, the risk of scalding yourself is very high. The eyes also get ethereal vapors, which can sting and tear. 

Steam Inhalers Are Therefore A Safe Variant:

The practical inhalation attachment extends over the nose and mouth so that the healing steam can have an optimal effect on the upper respiratory tract without affecting the eyes. As with the classic bowl and towel variant, you fill the device with hot water, add the desired additive such as salt or oil and close the container with the corresponding attachment.

You can get an inhaler in the pharmacy, drugstore, or online.

Saline Solution For A Stuffy Nose:

For a homemade saline solution for inhalation, dissolve 1 g table salt with 100 ml hot water. Inhaling with salt water is gentler than with essential oils.

Important: 

Asthmatics and children should never be treated with essential oils, as these can cause asthma attacks and even shortness of breath.

Nasal Douche For A Blocked Nose

Nasal rinsing with salt water can also be effective in releasing the nose. This flushes pathogens or pollen out of the nose.

Using A Nasal Douche:  

Tilt your head sideways over a sink to rinse your nose. Pour lukewarm water (or saltwater) into one nostril and drain it on the other side. If you have a very blocked nose, you have to try several times until the mucus loosens. Be careful not to apply too much pressure.

Drink A Lot If You Have A Cold

In addition to various home remedies, it also helps the body drink a lot with a stubborn cold. If the body is supplied with sufficient water, this promotes the liquefaction of viscous mucus. Peppermint tea has an expectorant effect due to its high menthol content. Other herbal teas are also effective home remedies for nasal congestion.

Vitamin C For Colds

If we take in enough vitamin C, we feel better. Although it is not scientifically clear whether, how and why foods containing vitamin C shorten the duration of illness, the result is decisive. Therefore, a cup of hot lemon with honey is recommended. And if it only makes you feel good, all cold sufferers have already gained a little.

Tip: 

Do not pour boiling water over the lemon and honey, but let it cool down briefly. The heat damages the good ingredients.

Onion And Garlic For A Nasal Congestion

It might sound like getting used to, but some swear by this home remedy: If you suffer from a stuffy nose, you can cut an onion into pieces, put it in an open vessel and place it at head level next to the bed at night.

In addition to onions, this can also be used with fresh garlic. Smelling a freshly sliced ​​onion may also help. The sharp smell of onions impels us. Otherwise, the tears in his eyes, the vapors can loosen the mucus in a stuffy nose. If you (whether you own or partner) can not bear the smell of onions and garlic, maybe in the tank a couple. Insert cotton balls and drizzle them with, for example, mint oil.

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Keep The Nasal Mucosa Moist

If the nose is often blocked, it can also be because you are constantly in the warm, dry or smoky air. Moistening the nasal mucous membrane can help against this. Saline nasal sprays have an expectorant and moisturizing effect similar to rinsing the nose with saltwater. You can also use nasal ointment. The dry air in an overheated bedroom can be made more nasal-friendly by ventilating it regularly and hanging up wet towels.

A steam bath can also relieve nasal congestion and moisten the mucous membranes. Many bath additives help you breathe freely again, especially for colds. These ensure that the mucous membranes in the nose swell. Additions with mint, eucalyptus, thyme or spruce needles and sea salt are particularly suitable.

Important: 

You should not take a bath if you have high blood pressure or fever because the hot bath stimulates the circulation and, under the circumstances mentioned, is too stressful for the body.

Make A Cold Bath Yourself:

The water temperature should be between 32 and 36 degrees for the cold bath. Lie in the tub for 15 to 20 minutes. For a full bath, take a teaspoon of vegetable oil or honey and add a maximum of 10 drops of essential oil. Mix well. Since the oils evaporate quickly, you should only add them to the water shortly before bathing.

Instead of the oils, you can also use herbs for the cold bath. These are a little milder. You can use different teas for this. Boil one liter of water and add one tea bag of fennel tea, one tea bag of mint tea and one teaspoon of aniseed. Let the brew sit in a pot for about 10 minutes. Pour the herbal mixture into your full bath.

Caution: Not all essential oils are suitable for pregnant women and children. Get advice at the pharmacy.

Blocked Nose From Nasal Spray?

Nasal sprays with active ingredients such as oxymetazoline or xylometazoline have a decongestant effect and thus help very quickly against a blocked nose. The effect lasts for several hours. But you shouldn’t use drugs of this kind for longer than a week, as the professional association of ear, nose and throat specialists explains on their information page for ENT doctors on the Internet.

The Reason: 

If used too often, the nasal mucous membrane gets used to it. It swells up more quickly after each spray – the nose is blocked. The result: you use the spray more often, and a kind of vicious circle develops. To master such habituation or dependency, only complete renunciation helps.

Stuffy Nose: When To See A Doctor?

In general, nasal congestion is not a cause for concern. However, if the symptoms do not improve within a week despite medication or home remedies, you should consult a doctor if you have a fever or sinus pain.

Important Note: 

The information in this article is provided for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for a doctor’s diagnosis. If you have any uncertainties, urgent questions or complaints, you should contact your doctor.

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