A dry nose often only shows up the day the heating comes on for the first time. The inside of your nose feels tight and slightly burning, and when you blow it there is a crust in your tissue, sometimes with a trace of blood. Not blocked, just uncomfortably present all day. Below you can read where a dry nose comes from, what you can do about it at home and when it is better to see your GP.
How to recognise a dry nose
The inside of your nose is lined with mucous membrane that normally stays moist. That moisture traps dust and germs and warms and humidifies the air you breathe before it reaches your lungs. When that membrane dries out, you notice it as:
- a tight or burning feeling inside your nose;
- crusts in your nose that keep coming back;
- a nose that bleeds a little as soon as you blow it;
- a dry throat when you wake up, especially in winter.
Many people mainly have trouble in the morning. During the day you drink and move around; at night you lie still for hours in a warm, dry room.
Where a dry nose comes from
Dry indoor air
This is by far the most common cause, and exactly why the complaints start in October. Cold outdoor air holds little moisture. Warm that air up indoors with the heating and the relative humidity quickly drops below 30 percent. Your mucous membrane then gives off moisture to the air all day instead of the other way round. In the bedroom, add to that the eight hours you lie there in a row without drinking.
A cold and lots of nose blowing
During a cold you blow your nose dozens of times a day. Each time you rub the same patch of skin just inside your nostril. After a few days it is raw and dry, even once the cold itself has passed.
Using a nasal spray for too long
A decongestant nasal spray (with xylometazoline) is meant for a few days. The leaflet states a maximum of seven days, and for good reason. Use it longer and the membrane becomes irritated and dry, and your nose actually gets blocked more often.
Other causes
Air conditioning in the car or at the office, smoking, some medicines (such as antihistamines for hay fever) and getting older play a part too. With the years the membrane simply produces less moisture.
What you can do about a dry nose yourself
Keep the air at home more humid
A humidity between 40 and 60 percent feels comfortable to most people. A hygrometer costs a few euros and shows you straight away where you stand. If you are below that: turn the heating down a degree, air the room for fifteen minutes a day with the window open and hang a bowl of water on the radiator or use a humidifier. Change that water daily, otherwise you are growing mould in it.
Rinse your nose with a saline solution
A lukewarm saline solution moistens the membrane, softens crusts and rinses away dust and dried mucus. Use a ready-made sachet of rinse salt, so the ratio of salt to water is right and it does not sting. A nasal wash bottle with 90 sachets of rinse salt is the easiest way to do it, and you simply top up later with loose sachets of nasal rinse salt. Do it once a day, preferably in the evening before bed, so your membrane goes into the night moist. You can read how to do it step by step in using a nasal wash: how to clean your nose.
Leave the crusts alone
Picking is tempting, but every time you pull off a crust you take a bit of membrane with it. That small wound forms a new crust again. Soften crusts instead by rinsing or by steaming for a few minutes over a bowl of warm water, then blow gently, one nostril at a time.
Care for the inside of your nostril
For the dry, raw edge just inside your nostril, a water-based nasal ointment or gel from the chemist is suitable. Apply a thin layer with a cotton bud, only to the front part. Petroleum jelly and other greasy ointments are best kept out of the deeper part of your nose.
Drink enough and go easy on nasal spray
Drink throughout the day and keep a glass of water by your bed. If you have a cold: use a nasal spray for a few days at most and rinse with salt instead when your nose mainly feels sticky and dry.
When should you see your GP?
A dry nose caused by the heating is annoying but not dangerous. Make an appointment if the complaints last longer than a few weeks despite the tips above, if you have frequent or heavy nosebleeds, if the complaint is only on one side, if pain comes with it, or if you have recently had nose surgery. Your GP can then check whether there is more going on than dry air.
Frequently asked questions
Why do I have a dry nose in the morning but not during the day?
At night you lie for hours in a warm bedroom with dry air without drinking or moving. During the day the membrane recovers because you drink and the air outside is more humid. Turning the heating down, a bowl of water on the radiator and rinsing in the evening usually already make the difference smaller.
How often may I rinse my nose when it is dry?
Once a day is enough for most people; with a cold, twice is fine. Always use lukewarm water that has been boiled and cooled, with a ready-made sachet of rinse salt. If it stings or burns, the temperature or the ratio is off.
Can I put petroleum jelly in my nose against crusts?
Preferably not deep inside your nose. A thin layer on the rim of your nostril is fine, but for the inside a water-based nasal ointment or gel from the chemist is more suitable. When in doubt, ask the chemist or pharmacist.
Is my nasal spray causing my dry nose?
It can, if you use a nasal spray with xylometazoline for more than seven days in a row. The membrane then becomes irritated and dry. Taper off the spray and rinse with a saline solution in the meantime; that is something you can do every day.
Measure the humidity in your bedroom tonight, put a glass of water within reach and rinse your nose before bed. Chances are you will wake up tomorrow morning with a more comfortable feeling in your nose already.