You should avoid putting your fingers in your nose because this can have consequences on our nasal passages by contributing to the proliferation of bacteria and viruses.
- Rhinotillexomania is the fact of cleaning your nose with your fingers, that is to say putting your fingers in your nose.
- This can lead to painful sores in the nose that make it easier for pathogens to enter the body.
At first glance, they seem unsightly, but they are no less essential: boogers! “During the approximately 22,000 daily respiratory cycles, booger-forming mucus acts as an essential biological filter to capture dust and allergens before they enter our airways, where they can cause inflammation, asthma and other long-term lung problems“, explain Gabriel Filippellis, Michael Gillings and Mark Patrick Taylor, in an article published this Monday, September 29 in The Conversation.
Viruses, bacteria and dangerous substances…
In the nasal cavity, boogers are therefore very important for our immune system. They protect us against infections. Specifically, goblet cells – or cells in the nasal passages – produce mucus and thus boogers which absorb huge numbers of pathogens that enter the nose.
Among these, there are viruses, bacteria but also dust that we breathe and which can contain potentially dangerous or allergenic substances such as lead, asbestos and pollen.
…that we swallow
We can swallow all these substances when nasal fluid flows down our throat. But this phenomenon is all the more exacerbated when you sniff or eat your boogers…
When it comes to viruses or bacteria, it’s usually not a big deal. However, for those present in the pollution, this can be more problematic. For example, lead enters children’s bodies more easily when ingested, which is harmful.
Staphylococcus aureus
When you put your fingers in your nose, you therefore increase the risk of suffering from sometimes serious infections such as staphylococcus aureus. “Nose cleaning is associated with nasal carriage of S. aureus (another name for Staphylococcus aureus), explains a study published in 2016 in the journal Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology. Its role in nasal carriage may well be a determining factor in some cases. Overcoming the finger-in-the-nose habit could facilitate S. aureus decolonization strategies”.
Streptococcus pneumoniae
And this is not the only virus concerned: “Nose picking could also be a vector for transmission of Streptococcus pneumoniae, a common cause of pneumonia among other infections”, develop the authors.
Thus, to limit the risks of infection, you must avoid putting your fingers in your nose so as not to introduce infectious agents and not to swallow your boogers… The ideal is therefore to blow your nose – or to use a handkerchief to get rid of the boogers – and throw it all in a trash can. And, once the operation is finished and your nose is clear, don’t forget to wash your hands!
