9 out of 10 times I can't breathe through my nose. It's been like that for as long as I can remember (I'm 18). Some times I can breathe though both nostrils, sometimes only one and sometimes none.
Why is this?
(If it helps I was told I was born with larger nasal cavities than most and hence more mucus in it)>
Hello and welcome to Healthypages. 🙂
Have you consulted your GP or other health professional about this? Our members may be able to offer suggestions as to complementary therapies which may help, but cannot diagnose a medical condition online.
Holistic
9 out of 10 times I can't breathe through my nose. It's been like that for as long as I can remember (I'm 18). Some times I can breathe though both nostrils, sometimes only one and sometimes none.
Why is this?(If it helps I was told I was born with larger nasal cavities than most and hence more mucus in it)>
Welcome Howlin.
1) Nine out of ten times is a remarkably precise figure. How did you arrive at it?
2) Apparently you're only eighteen years old, how far back can you remember?
3) Who told you, you had larger nasal cavities than 'most' ?
4) What is the correlation between nasal cavity size and mucus production?
5) How do you breath when your nasal cavities are blocked?
Excess mucus production is often linked with milk intolerance. Have you ever been tested for this or tried excluding it completely from your diet for two weeks? I could make all the difference.
If you click on the forums tab at the top of the page, scroll down to the allergy threads you'll find lots of information on these discussions.
I was the same at your age.
I definitely think that what cause my excess mucus production was the fact I keep getting continuously mild flue. Nowadays I dont have to take the buss and have people coughing near me (consider becoming antisocial perhaps? lol) . Even if I dont have problems with the mucus I am still not able to breath trough my nose most of the times but I feel significantly better.
I have been to the doctor and she kept giving me different nasal sprays which did not helped at all and eventually she thought the best idea to cure this problem is to breath trough my nose( her expert opinion without even looking once to notice I actually have some cartilage missing ), of course I lived for 26 years ( at that time) without trying to do, what a great idea NOT!!!
So one NHS doctor later I finally found someone to reason with and got sent to the hospital. 8 ( eight!!!!) months later of waiting I got seen by en expert. Now I dont want to freak you out so ill stop here.
Anyway, you should really go and get checked, you could be having polyps. On the long run is not good to breath trough your mouth, it can damage your lungs.
Easy checks are:
drink more water,
eat plenty of fruit and veg,
Slightly more involved check:
practice buteyko breathing exercises (see Breathing Free, by Theresa Hale).
Airways tend to close whenever we are:
dehydrated
acidic
overbreathing
Mucus tends to be produced when we are:
dehydrated
acidic
We tend to overbreathe when we are:
acidic
We become acidic when we are:
dehydrated
not eating enough fruit and veg (especially leafy greens, citrus - which is alkali forming in digestion, apples, pears)
working too hard, staying up late
We can also get grumbling respiratory problems when we suppress fevers, colds, flu, with decongestants, paracetemol etc, so best avoided really. Also if we spend too much time indoors with central heating, carpets, dust and so on. Also alcohol, drugs, smoking...
These recommendations are not 'treatments', just normal self-care, so do not need a diagnosis or prescription. No harm getting practitioner advice either, check-ups for polyps etc. But a few weeks of really taking care of yourself may work wonders.
1) Nine out of ten times is a remarkably precise figure. How did you arrive at it?
2) Apparently you're only eighteen years old, how far back can you remember?
3) Who told you, you had larger nasal cavities than 'most' ?
4) What is the correlation between nasal cavity size and mucus production?
5) How do you breath when your nasal cavities are blocked?
Well for 9 out of ten times I kind of meant my nose is blocked most of the time.
I can remember it being blocked since I was a baby.
The doctor said I had larger nasal cavities.
The doctor also said something about that cavity size and the mucus.
How did I breath when my nose is blocked? Through my mouth. Until recently (well like two or three years ago) I thought everyone breathed through there mouth.
(Sorry for the late reply)
Hi Howlin, those questions don't really help anyway.
Possible exception is the last one, which could be interpreted as interest in your particular breathing pattern. If you are overbreathing this could have a bearing on it, but the chances are you wouldn't know if you were, or might feel you had to because of the restriction.
What I have noticed is that many people your age do seem to mouth breathe and sound like their noses are blocked a lot of the time. I usually put that down to the factors I have already mentioned especially modern diets. A few other factors may be involved that can't be helped, so we change the things we can and usually that's enough to make a difference.
But sometimes self-help isn't enough, so if you don't get anywhere at first then come back, or seek out a recommendation for a suitable practitioner.
Many of us in all sorts of fields can help with these situations. The medical route is about paring down the possibilities to as few as possible. I happen to think this is fundamentally flawed, when you expand out the problem you never know where it's going to lead before you get results.
Good luck!