The Health Risks of Excessive Nose Picking
Nose picking is a common and normal thing that most people engage in occasionally, but when done excessively, it can lead to a variety of health issues.
While it might seem harmless, chronic nose picking can cause both physical and psychological problems. Understanding the risks and how to curb the habit can help you avoid the negative consequences of this often-ignored behavior.
Why Do People Pick Their Nose?
Nose picking is a natural reaction to irritation or discomfort inside the nasal passages. Common reasons include:
Dryness: When nasal passages become dry, crusts can form, leading to discomfort.
Allergies or colds: Increased mucus production from allergies or infections often leads to nose picking.
Habitual behavior: For some, nose picking is simply a habit or unconscious action.
The Health Risks of Excessive Nose Picking
While occasional nose picking may not cause significant harm, excessive or aggressive picking can lead to various complications, including:
1. Nosebleeds
The inside of the nose is lined with delicate blood vessels that can easily rupture if irritated. Frequent nose picking can damage these vessels, leading to frequent and sometimes severe epistaxis or nosebleeds.
2. Infections
Your nasal cavity serves as a filter for germs and bacteria, and when you introduce your fingers (which may carry pathogens), you increase the risk of infection.
One common infection is nasal vestibulitis, where the skin inside the nostrils becomes inflamed or infected. In severe cases, picking can lead to dangerous conditions like cellulitis, a bacterial skin infection that can spread.
One specific bacterium under investigation is chlamydia pneumoniae, which has been shown to travel up the nose and into the brain. Research conducted at the Clem Jones Centre for Neurobiology and Stem Cell Research demonstrated in mouse models that this pathogen could initiate changes in the brain that resemble the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. This suggests that nose picking could inadvertently create a gateway for dangerous microbes to cause damage that potentially leads to dementia.
3. Nasal Damage
Chronic picking can cause small tears in the nasal lining, leading to scabbing and crusting. Over time, this can result in sores and ulcers inside the nose, and in extreme cases, perforation of the nasal septum (the wall between the nostrils). A perforated septum can cause breathing issues and may require surgery to repair.
4. Reduced Sense of Smell
Frequent irritation and damage to the nasal tissue may eventually affect your sense of smell. Damage to olfactory receptors can impair your ability to detect scents, a condition known as hyposmia or even anosmia (total loss of smell) in extreme cases.
5. Spreading Germs
Nose picking doesn’t just pose risks to the individual. It can also contribute to the spread of illnesses like the common cold or flu. Hands often come into contact with surfaces covered in germs and inserting them into the nose can introduce bacteria or viruses into the body. Additionally, after nose picking, those germs can be spread to others through handshakes, doorknobs, or other shared surfaces.
How to Break the Habit of Excessive Nose Picking
If nose picking has become an ingrained habit, here are some tips to reduce or stop the behavior:
Use a saline nasal spray or a humidifier to prevent dryness in your nose
Use tissues if you feel the need to remove something from your nose to prevents the direct transfer of bacteria from your hands to your nasal cavity
Keeping your hands occupied with activities like doodling, fidgeting, or squeezing a stress ball can help break the cycle
For individuals who pick their nose compulsively or as a form of body-focused repetitive behavior (BFRB), such as rhinotillexomania, seeking help from a healthcare provider, therapist, or counselor may be beneficial. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and habit-reversal training are effective techniques for managing compulsive behaviors.
REFERENCES
Nasal vestibulitis: What is it & how is it treated?. Cleveland Clinic. (2024, May 1). https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/24928-nasal-vestibulitis
Chacko, A; Delbaz, A; Walkden, H; Basu, S; Armitage, CW; Eindorf, T; Trim, LK; Miller, E; West, NP; St John, JA; Beagley, KW; Ekberg, JAK, Chlamydia pneumoniae can infect the central nervous system via the olfactory and trigeminal nerves and contributes to Alzheimer's disease risk, Scientific reports, 2022, 12 (1), pp. 2759
Mocella S, Muia F, Giacomini PG, Bertossi D, Residori E, Sgroi S. Innovative technique for large septal perforation repair and radiological evaluation. Acta Otorhinolaryngol Ital. 2013 Jun;33(3):202-14. PMID: 23853417; PMCID: PMC3709522.
Fishman, S. (2024, July 18). Rhinotillexomania: Symptoms, causes, and treatment. Psych Central. https://psychcentral.com/ocd/rhinotillexomania
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