Natural And Home Remedies For Runny Nose

A runny nose is one of the irritating problems during the common cold, but there are lots of home remedies available to deal with it. During the runny nose, you may also feel your nose stuffed up and forced to breathe in your mouth. A runny nose is caused by the discharge of nostrils mucus. The excess nasal mucus leads to a watery nasal that affects your throat also.

If you do not take any remedies for a runny nose, it may lead to the next stage called nasal congestion, which is caused by the inflammation in the nasal cavity. The swollen nasal passage blocks the airflow and makes it hard to breathe by using the nose. A runny nose also affects your daily life and your mood by using a huge amount of tissues, unable to find the taste of the food, difficult to breathe, and sometimes it blocks the ears.

These all cause physical discomfort and affect your routine. But you can easily get relief from this problem by using some home remedies. Before going to check the remedies, we should know the reasons for a runny nose, it will help to easily address the problem.

What Causes a Runny Nose?

Usually, there are four common reasons for a runny nose. Here we explained each of them and how it affects our health.

Common Cold

Common Cold is also known as upper respiratory infection, which is one of the common reasons for the runny nose told by the doctors. The name “common cold” describes that you can get infected from the cold weather, but this statement is not completely true. More than 200 viruses create upper respiratory infection.

Usually, the common cold is spread through the air and close personal contact. so that it can easily infect the entire office and household in a short time. A small and crowded area is a likely environment for spreading of the common cold. Pollen is one of the allergens that mainly causes respiratory allergy.

Hormonal Changes

Hormonal imbalance or change also causes inflammation and enlargement in the nasal blood vessel. The cold caused by this problem is also called hormonal rhinitis. Hormonal imbalance and changes will directly affect the membranes in the nasal passage. During this infection, the nose will produce more mucus than the normal times which leads to a dreadful runny nose.

Moreover, hormonal rhinitis is one of the common symptoms for pregnant women, which is caused by major hormonal changes during pregnancy. 39% of pregnant women deal with nasal congestion and runny nose. Contraceptive and menopause puberty also causes hormonal rhinitis.

Allergies

Allergies are a reason for runny noses. This will occur when you contact the allergens or irritants that stimulate the allergic reaction. Allergens come from pollen, dust, animal fur, or some kind of food. The allergies caused by the allergies from pollen come seasonally.

You can deal with a runny nose because of pollen in the spring and summer seasons. In those seasons the flowering trees, plants, grasses, and weeds produce pollen. The immune system will react to these allergen particles, so you will get an allergic reaction that is a threat to your health.

These allergic particles also cause discomfort to your nasal passage. As a result, it will cause a runny nose, inflammation, and sneezing. Usually, the nasal secretion caused by the allergies is clear, but in some rare cases, it will become purulent and yellow.

Cold Air

Cold climate is not a problem for some regions, but some tropical regions like India will have excess heat in some seasons. People use air conditioners to deal with the unbearable heat, but it may cause some health problems also. Cold air will cause your nasal membranes to dry out, it will trigger the production of an excess amount of mucus. This is the effort of balancing the fluids in the nasal passage. This is the reason that your nose is always wet or runny while your room is too cold.

Symptoms of Runny Nose

Most people think that the nose only reacts in a cold and dusty environment. But, the runny nose is a symptom that the nasal passage is irritated or inflamed. If you are not treated for this problem, these symptoms will continue for a few days or weeks. Here are some of the symptoms of the runny nose:

Nasal Discharge
Excessive mucus production
Nasal congestion
Difficult to breathe
Bouts of sneezing
Cough or sore throat
Headache or facial pain by increasing the pressure in the nasal cavities.
In some extreme cases, it may lead to bleeding while blowing the nose.

How To Treat Runny Nose

Taking antihistamines is a common way to treat runny noses. During the runny nose, our body will automatically segregate a chemical called histamines. Usually, this chemical will segregate while the body tries to fight against allergies and infections. Histamines are a reason for causing inflammation. Taking antihistamines will help to stop the effect of histamines. This anti dose will help to get relief from runny nose, sneezing, and cough. You can easily get antihistamine medicines in supermarkets, convenience stores, and pharmacies because it is considered over-the-country medicines.

Zyrtec, Clarinase, Telfast, and Claritin are some of the antihistamines dosage and also you can easily buy these medicines without any doctor prescriptions. These antihistamine medicines will make you dizzy, so it is better to take them before going to bed. Other types of OTC medicines also include decongestants. This decongestant will effectively help to fight against blocked nasal passage and stuffiness. You can get the decongestants in the form of oils, nasal sprays, and humidifiers.

Home Remedies For Runny Nose

If you are looking to get relief from a runny nose in a natural way, there are a lot of options available that help to get relief from runny nose and inflammation. Moreover, the home remedies for the runny nose are very effective and simple which helps to quickly get relief from the infection. You can try the following home treatment for a runny nose.

Drinks a Lot of Fluids

People who are suffering from a stuffy nose can drink a lot of fluids to keep themselves hydrated. Drinking a lot of water and chicken broth will help treat runny noses and also helps to treat nasal congestion symptoms. Regular consumption of fluids will help to thin the mucus.

The thinner mucus will quickly drain from the sinuses and nose. The thick and sticky mucus will congest the nose and make it hard to breathe. Consuming a lot of liquids will keep to membranes for airway lubrication. It is better to avoid beverages during the runny nose, it will dehydrate you. Avoid drinking like coffee and alcoholic beverages.

Facial Steam

The facial steam method is used to open the pores to clear acne and pimples but it is not only used to treat skin but inhaling hot steam will also help to effectively treat runny noses. It will help to open the blocks in the nasal passages. Inhaling the hot steam will thin the mucus and also provides the required moisture for healing.

It will help to clear the blocks in the nose and provide a better breath. A study conducted in the year 2015 with people who have a common cold proves that inhaling hot steam is more effective to treat a runny nose. It will reduce the recovery time by about one week when compared with no inhaling hot steam.

Here is the process of creating own facial steam:

Heat the water in a clean pot on the stove. Heat the water just enough to get steam and don’t let it boil.
Place your face on the steam for up to 20-30 minutes and cover your head by using a cloth.
Take a deep breath through the nose and take a break if your face gets heated.
Finally, blow your nose to remove the mucus from the nose and sinuses.

You can also add some essential oil like peppermint, eucalyptus, rosemary, pine, spearmint, sage, thyme, and tea tree in the hot water for a better result. The chemical compounds in these essential oils will effectively decongest the nose to make you feel better. You can also use these herbs in the dried form in the hot steam and inhale the vapors to get the benefits like using essential oil.

Having Hot Drinks

Consuming hot drinks is a well-known and traditional remedy for colds. Moreover, some research also proves that having hot drinks is the best home treatment for the common cold. Consuming beverages like tea prepared with some herbs is very helpful to treat colds. The result of consuming tea is only because of the steam, and heat of the beverage that helps to decongest and open the airway for better breath.

The herbs contained in the herbal tea will have a very mild amount of decongestants. If you are going to consume the hot drink for a cold, make sure that you are adding anti-inflammatory and antihistamine herbs like ginger, chamomile, nettle, and mint in the drink.

Prepare a cup of hot herbal tea and inhale the steam before consuming it. Drinking herbal tea will help to soothe the sore throat and helps to treat a runny nose. A study published in the year 2009 proves that drinking hot tea will help to treat cold symptoms. This study proves that hot herbal tea stimulates the nerves related to the oral and nasal cavities, which helps to get better relief from cold symptoms.

Use Nasal Spray

Using nasal spray will help to clean congestion caused by colds or allergies. A nasal spray will help to keep the nasal passage open by cleaning all allergens like dust, pollen, or pet dander that leads to nasal congestion. The nasal spray also helps to loosen the dried or thick mucus that makes it easier to remove. It also soothes the irritated, dry nasal passage.

Neti Pot

Neti pot looks like a small teapot, which is used to flush out the sinuses and nose. This device is commonly used for nasal irrigation and also helps to treat sinus problems like runny nose and nose discomfort. Neti pot is specially designed to easily flush out the mucus. You can add the saltwater solution or warm saline to the pot. These rinses clean the mucus thoroughly from the nose and sinuses.

You can easily purchase the neti pot in the local store, pharmacy, or online. Use the neti pot in the proper direction. Improper use of neti pot may worsen the runny nose and also cause some sinus infections. Make sure that you are using distilled or sterile water in the neti pot.

While using the neti pot, you should lean over the sink and tilt your head sideways then pour the water in the nostril until the neti pot is empty. Then release the water from the other sides of the nostril. You have to refill the pot and repeat the process for another side. Neti pot may be strange to use and also it is a bit messier to use than the nasal spray. Anyhow, it is very effective to treat runny noses.

Hot Shower

Taking a hot shower will provide quick relief from a runny nose. Like facial steam and herbal tea, a hot shower will help to ease a stuffy and runny nose. Taking a warm bath with Epsom salt for 20 minutes will effectively treat a runny nose. You can also use some essential oil in the bath that is mentioned above for facial steam.

A hot shower does not only help to clear the nose and also the hot bath will ease the body muscles and provide better sleep. Epsom salt is a laxative, so keep the kids away from the bathwater to prevent them from drinking the Epsom salt water.

Eating Spicy Foods

The chemicals in the spicy foods will help to get better relief from a runny nose, which is not caused by allergies. People who can tolerate the heat in the food can try this method to get relief from cold and runny noses. If you are not aware of this method, at first, you can try a little bit of spicy seasoning and see the result for the further process.

You can use hot spices like ghost pepper, cayenne pepper, wasabi, habanero, horseradish, and ginger for a better result. These spices provide a heat feel while eating, expand the passageways, and help to get better relief from sinus problems.

Capsaicin

Capsaicin is a chemical compound that provides spiciness in the chili pepper. It is widely used to treat psoriasis and nerve pain, but if you use it on your nose, it will help to treat a runny nose which is caused by congestion. Most of the studies prove that capsaicin effectively treats runny noses than OTC medicines.

Apply Warm Compress

Using a warm compress on the forehead and nose several times per day will help to get relief from URS like runny nose and nasal congestion. If you don’t have any compress in your home then you can moisten a cloth using warm water and apply it on the face several times per day. This method will help to loosen the mucus and helps to easily get relief from nasal congestion.

Get a Lot of Rest

If you are not feeling well, it is very important to get a lot of rest so that your body will recover quickly. Research proves that your body will produce new immune cells while sleeping. Cytokinesis is a kind of protein that is very important to fight against inflammation and infection that is produced and released during sleeping. This statement ensures that sleeping will help to maintain the immune system in a good manner. Moreover, taking a rest will provide a break from blowing the nose.

Tips To Deal With The Runny Nose

Dealing with a runny nose is an annoying experience. The hassle, discomfort, and lack of sleep because of a runny nose will lead to irritability and makes you feel very angry. Here are some of the tips to deal with a runny nose.

Use the remedies before sleeping

People who are suffering from runny noses should require sufficient rest to recover, but it is very difficult during runny noses. The difficulty to breathe and discomfort will keep you awake the whole night. Due to this problem, it is better to take remedies before going to bed. Cleaning the mucus before going to bed will ease the congestion and help to easily fall asleep.

The people who are dealing with a runny nose are better to stay home and take a rest. Staying home during a cold also saves others from the risk of catching a cold from you. Do your best to get better sleep that allows your body to strengthen and heal quickly.

Using soft tissue while blowing the nose

Using facial tissues to clean the nose is very gentle to the skin. The skin around the nose is very sensitive, so you have to carefully choose the fabric that you are going to choose to blow your nose. Using a rough cloth to clean the nose may cause some irritation, so it is very important to choose the gentle and soft fabric.

It is better to avoid handkerchiefs, paper towels, and clothes. Using facial tissue is a good option to clean the nose. Facial tissues contain softeners or lotions that make the tissue very soft and gentle on the skin.

If you are using wet tissues to blow the nose, which means you are using moisture tissues. If you think that wet tissues provide better relief from a blocked nose then it’s no. Wet tissues contain alcohol substances that will dry out the nose and worse the situation.

Stay hygiene to stop the germ spreading

Practicing hygiene habits will help to reduce germ spreading. Making sure that you are not spreading the germs to the people around you is also very important. Following are the hygiene habits that will help to reduce germ spreading.

Frequently washing hands by using soap thoroughly will help to reduce germ spreading. While washing your hand you have to make sure that you are cleaning your fingers, around the wrist, under the nail, and the back of the hand. You should wash your hands for at least 20 seconds. If you want to stay more hygienic, it is better to have a hand sanitizer with you.

During coughing and sneezing, most people cover their mouth using their hands, but it is better to cover their mouth using their elbow. Because you are not regularly using your elbow like your hand.

People who always have tissues in their hands make sure that you are disposing of them properly. Don’t leave your used tissues on the ground. Throw the tissues immediately on the waste bin after wiping or blowing your nose. Don’t put the used tissues in the pockets. It is also recommended to use the face mask to reduce the germ spread.

Final Words

There are a lot of home remedies available to get relief from a runny nose without using any medicines. Some of these remedies might give better results than other treatments. But, if you think that the runny nose is caused by viral or bacterial infections, it is better to see the doctor.

Home remedies do not directly get rid of viruses or bacterias that cause a runny nose. These home remedies provide better relief from the infections but do not cure completely. If you are looking to directly approach the problems like colds, allergies, and viral infections, it is good to see medical professionals. Getting a proper diagnosis for the runny nose and getting correct medicines will help speed up the healing process and stop the dripping.