One Nostril Always Blocked: Why Do You Experience This Inconvenience When You’re Sick?

Some people notice that one of their nostrils is permanently blocked when sick. According to a medical professional, this has nothing to do with our body's coping mechanism but more on the anatomy of our nasal system.

One Nostril Always Blocked When Sick

Individuals with colds or fever notice that their nose is stuffed when sick. Michael Yong, MD, a board-certified otolaryngologist (ENT) and fellowship-trained neuroradiologist at Pacific Neuroscience Institute in Santa Monica, California, said the nose has four pairs of sinuses, and the air-filled pockets are linked to the nasal cavities that produce mucus keeping the nose moist.

According to Yong, three pairs of turbinates on the sides of each nasal cavity fold within the nose to help with nasal drainage and warm and moisten the air you breathe in.

The nose and nasal turbinates go through a nasal cycle when things are done every day. The "spontaneous alternating congestion and decongestion of each nostril" is what Persephone Vargas, DNP, an associate professor at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey's School of Nursing, defined as this nasal cycle.

Per Benjamin S. Bleier, MD, a Mass Eye and Ear sinus expert, one side of the nose tends to swell and fill with blood, and you're never aware of it until it happens on the other side.

The expert notes that when one side swells, you feel blocked. However, when you add on swelling and thick mucus that can come with an illness, that doesn't cause the airway to get too narrow, and you don't usually notice it.

According to Kathleen Kelly, MD, an otolaryngologist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, someone with a deviated septum-a- a condition in which the septum is moved to one side also experiences a more pronounced feeling of a one-sided blockage.

Inflammation can also occur in your turbinates. According to Yong, that may result in a physical blockage of breathing, which may appear on one side and make that side feel more clogged than the other.

Nasal Cycle When Sick

Aside from our nasal anatomy, another potential reason one nostril is stuffed is the psychological response called the nasal cycle. The nasal cycle is a procedure where your nostrils alternately take in more air, according to Brigham and Women's Hospital physician Rachel Roditi, M.D., who practices otolaryngology.

Urjeet Patel, M.D., chair of the otolaryngology division at Cook County Health in Chicago, added that humans are born with a natural cycle in which we can only breathe through one side of our noses at a time. This cycle rotates every few hours. He claims that we typically sense the restriction considerably more when we are ill and have nasal congestion.

According to Dr. Roditi, the inferior turbinates, structures on both sides of your nose, are responsible for warming and humidifying the air before it enters your lungs. This lessens dryness and inflammation, protecting your lungs.

That is a labor-intensive procedure. To make the process go more smoothly, your nose directs more energy toward one side than the other.

Because of the swelling, less space remains for air to enter. However, it's subtle, so you generally won't notice it developing unless you have an infection, cold, allergies, or a structural issue like a deviated septum.

However, Dr. Roditi notes that when you are ill, your nose's blood flow rises even more, which causes swelling and increased mucus production in the nasal region.

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