Explore safe and effective methods to get rid of boogers. Learn gentle techniques to ensure comfort and hygiene in a healthy nasal environment.
Having hard boogers in your nose can help keep germs and dirt out of your lungs, but having bloody boogers could mean you have an infection or irritation. If this is the case, you should see a doctor.
Do not pick that bug! Boogers, which are the dry, crusty bits of snot in your nose, are good for you. They keep dirt, viruses, and other things you don’t want in your lungs that come in when you breathe.
From your nose and throat to your lungs, mucus lines your whole respiratory system. Sometimes you don’t think about what mucus does until you cough up phlegm or blow it out of your nose onto a tissue.
Boogers are dry mucus that has dirt and other things stuck in it. The tiny hairs in your nose, called cilia, move the mucus from inside your nose to the front of your nose, where it can be blown out or picked.
Boogers happen to everyone. Every day, our noses make them, and they’re usually nothing to worry about.
However, if your boogers become dry and bloody, it could mean that the mucus or skin that lines your nose is sensitive and infected. Then you need to see a doctor to treat a deeper issue.
What is Mucus?
It is clear, sticky, and has no color. Mucus can be found in the nose, sinuses, mouth, throat, and lungs. Mucus in the nose doesn’t bother people very often; it just slides down the back of the throat and clears up on its own.
It only bothers you when the mucus gets thick, dries out, and forms boogers, starts to run, or blocks your nasal path. This is usually a sign of an illness from a cold or flu virus or sinusitis caused by allergies.
The Role of Nasal Mucus
When you breathe in, mucus keeps the inside of your airways moist and protects them from things like dust, allergens, and germs. Think of the mucus in your nose as a screen. If you breathe in, it filters the air and stops particles and other things that you don’t want from getting into your lungs and irritating or hurting them.
As the mucus moves through the nasal tubes, it drains out of the nose. Fine hairs in the nose (cilia) and hair cells inside the nose help this flow. Another job of nose hair is to filter the air we breathe in by catching dust and germs before they can get deeper into the nasal tubes.
It can let more allergens and bacteria into the nose, which is one reason why shaving your nose hair is not the best idea. This can lead to more illnesses.
Boogers and dry nose, an irritating problem
Many times, things in the surroundings, some illnesses, or even some medications can make your nose dry. When the mucous membranes in your nose dry out, they can become very sensitive. This can cause symptoms like burning, itching, painful cracking, the formation of crusts (boogers), and bleeding.
What makes your nose dry:
- Taking in air that is very cold or very dry (from heating devices)
- Breathing in dry air from places that are air-conditioned
- Sjögren’s syndrome and other diseases
- Having allergies and a stuffy nose
- Too much use of medicines like antihistamines and some nose decongestants
- Too much use of certain nose sprays with cortisones or decongestants that work locally
- Hormonal changes (i.e. during menopause)
Too much dryness in the nose can lead to boogers. If one of the above reasons makes the mucus in your nose not thick enough to be sucked down into the nasal cavity, it will dry out inside your nose, generally near the openings of your nose. In the end, the mucus turns dry and hard, turning into what we call a booger.
A soft blow out with a tissue can help get rid of boogers. Studies have shown that picking your nose can bring more harmful germs into the nose, which could lead to more serious infections. So don’t do it.
Help For a Dry Nose
Luckily, it’s easier to treat a dry nose than a stuffy nose. Most of the problems that come with having a dry nose will go away if you make some easy changes to your lifestyle to keep the nasal mucus membrane from drying out.
Try these things:
- Use a humidifier to keep moisture in the air
- As you work in a room with air conditioning, try to keep the temperature steady (not too hot or too cold).
- If your nose is stuffy, don’t use decongestants, which can dry out your nose. Instead, use natural treatments to break up the mucus.
- Do not take too many medicines.
- Do not pick your nose.
- To clear out your nose and sinuses, use a cleaner.
- Smoke and alcohol can dry you out, so try to stay away from them.
How to Safely Remove Boogers from Your Nose
It’s usually safe to pick your nose, but there are a few things you should know before you go exploring inside your nose:
- Pick up a tissue. Boogers have germs all over them. If you want to stop those annoying bits of dried mucus from getting on your hands and then into your mouth or eyes, wrap your moving finger in a tissue.
- Clean up. Wash your hands with soap and water. Germs that could make you sick can get on your fingers. After you’re done looking for gold, wash your hands again. Not a sink or soap? In a pinch, hand spray will work.
- Do not bother. If you feel a bug that won’t go away, don’t push your finger in further. You might hurt more. Instead, try to get the bug to loosen up first. That will be talked about more in the next part.
- Clear your nose. You can blow your nose if you don’t want to look at what’s in your nose. The steam from a hot shower might also help the boogers move around better. Get a tissue and blow your nose. Things inside might come out the other side.
- Do not use a cotton swab. But even though they’re sleek and small enough to get in, those tools could hurt your nose and sinuses. That’s because it’s tough to tell how far you’re going.
Removing a Scablike Booger
These sticky blobs of snot turn into crusty cling-ons every once in a while. They might be rough around the edges and stick to your nose hairs. Taking them off hurts and could cause problems.
When mucus dries on the inside walls of your nose, it can stick to the thin membrane. What you expect to happen when you try to get rid of it may not happen. If you cut that skin, you might get a nosebleed. You could also make everyone sick.
If you think you have a tight boogie, loosen up a bit.
When your sinuses are stuffed up, many people use a neti pot or a saline solution to clean out their nose. They help keep mucus wet and move it out of your body, either through your nose or down your digestive tract. For boogers, they’ll help them get free and move along their path.
Either tool should be used once or twice a day, or until the booger is gone. Don’t forget to clean your hands and use tissues before and after.
See a doctor if the booger still won’t move. You could be having trouble with your structure, like a nasal polyp, which is stopping you from getting a clean sweep.
How To Remove Deep Boogers From A Newborn Or Young Child
For boogers that aren’t in your nose, follow these steps to get rid of them: Try to pluck them gently with a finger that is covered in tissue. Make sure you don’t cram or push too hard.
A saline spray will make it easier to get rid of tough bits of dried mucus by making them more flexible. But you might want to use a bulb needle on very young children.
That’s because babies and little kids may not be able to blow their noses well. You can use a bulb syringe to draw it out.
Causes Of Boogers
Boogers are dried-out bits of mucus that have dirt or bacteria stuck in them. Whenever you take in, these pollutants enter your nose. These irritants are being held in your body so they don’t get to your lungs, where they could do more damage.
You might also get boogers if your surroundings changes a lot. One example is that dry places might bother your nose. This can cause too many boogers to form, and the pieces may be especially dry and sharp.
You may get more boogers when you have a sinus infection or a head cold because your body is making too much mucus.
Do Boogers Have A Purpose?
There is a good reason for mucus. It is found all over the body, and where it is found affects its activity in a small way.
Every day, the body makes 1.5 quarts of mucus. On more than 2,000 square feet of body area, it protects and lubricates tissue all over the body.
In the end, the mucus has to leave the body through the mouth or nose. After someone swallows mucus, their gut breaks it down.
Most mucus is water (98%), salt (1%), and long molecules (1%). Mucus is sticky and slimy because of long molecules called mucins. This helps trap germs and other particles.
As you breathe in, mucus in your nose keeps germs from getting into your lungs. Some of these are:
- viruses
- bacteria
- pollen
- dust
- dirt
Cilia, the tiny hairs in the nose, move the mucus out of the nose through the front or back of the throat once it has caught the invaders. When mucus that contains germs dries out, boogers form.
When To See A Doctor
These are the main reasons you should see a doctor about nose boogers:
Having serious nosebleeds, which could mean you’ve been hurt; having recurring nose problems, which could mean you have a deeper problem like a sinus infection; having a lot of pain and discomfort in your nose, which could mean the problem isn’t with your nose boogers at all; mucus changing color along with other symptoms that last for more than 10 days.
5 Interesting Booger Facts
1. Swallowing Boogers
Many times during the day, you’ll swallow boogers that you don’t clean out of your nose. To be honest, the gut is where most of the mucus our bodies make ends up anyway. The dried-out mucus that moved to the front of the nose can move back toward the back of the nasal tube and down the throat if you don’t blow or pick at your nose.
2. Tissue Wisdom
A tissue is the best thing to use to clean your nose. It’s not hard to understand, but it’s important! It is best to use a towel because boogers are mostly made up of mucus and germs. Also, after you blow your nose or pick your nose, wash your hands or at least use hand sanitizer. You can use saline drops, mist, or spray to help clean out your nose.
3. Hydration and Boogers
Drink more water if you have a lot of boogers. Since water is what mucus is made of, you should drink a lot of it to keep it thin. Your body is more likely to make more boogers when it’s dry. In the winter in the Midwest, we turn on the heat to stay warm, but this dries out the air we breathe. We make more thick mucus when we take in dry air, which is harder to get rid of. We also feel worse in the winter because of thick mucus and postnasal drip.
4. Bloody Boogers
It’s okay if boogers are stained or bloody. Our boogers change color or get red every once in a while. That doesn’t always mean something bad. There are many small blood vessels in the nose, close to where the boogers go. This means that when we blow our nose or pick our nose, we may see some blood in the foam. It can also get worse if it’s dry. We see that all the time. Different-colored boogers don’t scare me either.
5. Salty Temptation
Boogers are eaten by kids because they taste salty. A lot of kids pick their noses and eat the boogers because they taste salty. If you want to stop this habit, try using positive reinforcement. That is, don’t tell your child off for looking at or eating boogers. Instead, praise them when they blow their nose or clean it out with a tissue. If you want to stop the spread of bugs, teach them not to pick their noses because that holds germs. To get help with your child’s bad habits, talk to his or her primary care doctor.
Takeaway
It’s not always a good idea to pick your nose, but sometimes you should. Say, don’t cram your fingers up your nose until you wash your hands. Then, wash your hands again afterward.
Nose boogers that won’t come off may need a little more convincing before they’ll give up the delicate lining of your nose. If you pull too hard, you might break your nose, which leaves you open to getting an illness.
See a doctor if your boogers won’t go away no matter how hard you try to sweep them away or stop them. Your nose may be clogging up a lot because of something deeper going on.