Please don't put garlic up your nose to clear congestion. — 123rf.com
Turns out, the method works — but not for the reasons people think. What believers in the apparent mucus hack don’t know is that not only will they be left with a string of boogers to clean up, they could also face infection, irritation and a nose that’s even more runny than they started with.“Garlic has a strong smell and, when it starts to irritate the nose, you’ll definitely have some mucus drainage.
“What they’re trying to do is use the odorants from the garlic itself to cause a vasoconstrictive effect, which causes the nasal mucosa to decongest and which may open up the nasal passages,” Dr Anthony Del Signore, director of rhinology and endoscopic skull bases surgery at Mount Sinai Union Square in New York, told Today. “The vasoconstriction allows for greater airflow.”