You're crying: When you cry, tears come out of the tear glands under your eyelids and drain through the tear ducts that empty into your nose. Tears mix with mucus there and your nose runs.
Your eyes have tiny drain holes, called lacrimal puncta, located in the inner corners of your upper and lower eyelids. These connect to your nose via channels called the 'lacrimal canaliculi', so any tears that don't run down your face will dribble into your nose.
When we cry, our tears take away some of the chemicals that build up during emotional stress. Tears travel through a tear duct and through the nasal passage where they come into contact with mucus. If there is a build up of mucus here, the tears can loosen it and help flush out your nose.
A deviated septum occurs when your nasal septum is significantly displaced to one side, making one nasal air passage smaller than the other. When a deviated septum is severe, it can block one side of the nose and reduce airflow, causing difficulty breathing.
The underlying mechanism has to do with an asymmetry in blood flow between the nasal cavities. Blood vessels can swell and change the airflow in one nostril in comparison with the other. This cycle is controlled by your autonomic nervous system (ANS) and lasts around 2 hours per cycle.
The Lowdown On Mucus
Mucus is not a waste product or just fuel for a sneeze. Even when we are blowing our noses, mucus is providing a valuable service. We have mucus all over our bodies—our eyes, noses, throats, lungs, digestive tract, and even genitalia.
Most of the mucus that people sneeze out comes from the mucosal glands lining the nasal passages, Lebowitz said. People often think it's also coming from their sinuses, but in fact only a very small amount of mucus is produced in the sinuses, he said.
Mucus is mostly water. But it also contains special proteins, sugars, and molecules that help the body control harmful germs. Usually you're not aware of all the mucus that slowly flows through your body. That is, until you get sick.
Tears and all of our other body fluids are salty because of electrolytes, also known as salt ions. Our bodies use electrolytes to create electricity that helps power our brains and move our muscles. Electrolytes contain: Sodium (which accounts for the saltiness)
The downsides of crying
The physical downsides of crying are pretty straightforward: puffy eyes, splotchy skin and a headachy feeling that can be chalked up to the strong contractions of your facial muscles while you weep and pressure in your sinuses from the runny nose that accompanies a tear-fest.
Bad Effects of Crying on Health
It can lead to fits or can cause acute shortness of breath. For those with severe heart conditions, there can be a cardiac pain. Crying can take a toll on your body if you have certain medical conditions. For most people crying does more good for their body than harm.
We also create a lot of mucous when we cry — snot, tears, and generally blubbering. All of this mucous could leave you feeling congested or having a headache. Plus, the muscle strain we exert when we cry can be enough to cause a tension headache.
So here's the big question: Should you spit or swallow your phlegm? Even though it might taste nasty, “there's nothing wrong with swallowing it,” Dr. Comer says. In fact, that's probably what your body expects you to do, which is why phlegm naturally drains down into the back of your throat.
“Normally, mucus is clear. When you have a cold or infection, it might turn green or yellow,” said Alyssa. Clear snot usually signals allergies or some kind of environmental factor that is triggering your nose to start running, such as inhaling dust or allergens. Clear snot is nothing to worry about.
And as a practical matter, it is certainly safe to swallow phelgm if the cause is asthma, or a relatively innocuous lung infection.” So there you have it – despite what your parents told you, phlegm won't give you a tummy ache, or prolong your cold.
For good nasal health, though, resisting the urge to pick your nose is essential and can keep you from spreading unwanted bacteria. While picking your nose from time to time isn't going to kill you, it's a bad habit to develop, like nail biting, and can lead to an infection in your nasal tract.
That is what most people do, believing that it would help in speedy recovery. Turns out, it might make your cold even worse. Blowing the nose surely alleviates the stuffiness of the nose, but some people argue that it is not good to reverse the flow of mucus into the sinuses and slowing the drainage process.
Nasal crusting is caused by abnormal mucus production or excessive accumulation. The mucus is thick and does not drain normally. Large crusts may form which may interfere with breathing or emit a foul odor. Parents frequently report these odors from their children's noses.
If you feel that you are blocked up but are not really producing mucus, then this is more indicative of a physical abnormality, such as nasal polyps or a deviated septum. It is quite common for people to complain of having a blocked nose on one side.
According to Dr. Leann Poston of Invigor Medical, “Elevating your head before bed can increase drainage and decrease congestion.” That's why the best position to sleep with a stuffy nose is on your back with different types of pillows elevating your head and neck.