Many people will recognise the situation: breathing through your nose feels relatively easy during the day, but when you go to bed, one or both nostrils start to feel blocked. Nasal congestion can sometimes also disturb your sleep and cause you to breathe through your mouth during the night.
So why does your nose become blocked specifically at night – even when you don't have a cold?
There can be several reasons. Simply lying down can affect how open your nasal passages are, but allergic rhinitis, allergens in the bedroom and other problems affecting the nose and airways may also play a role.
Lying Down Can Increase Nasal Congestion
One explanation is surprisingly simple: your position.
Studies have found that nasal patency decreases when moving from a seated to a lying position. In a study published in 2024, researchers measured nasal patency in both healthy individuals and people with allergic rhinitis. Objective measurements showed that nasal patency decreased when lying down in both groups.
When lying on one side, changes were particularly noticeable on the side of the nose closest to the bed. The nasal turbinate tissue became more swollen and the open space within the nasal cavity decreased.
This helps explain a familiar experience: your nose may feel completely normal during the day, but breathing through it becomes more difficult once you lie down.
Allergic Rhinitis Can Make Breathing More Difficult at Night
If allergic rhinitis is behind your nasal congestion, its effects can also extend to your sleep.
Nasal congestion is one of the most common and troublesome symptoms of allergic rhinitis. Research reviews have found an association between nasal congestion, poorer sleep quality and increased daytime tiredness.
Allergens in the bedroom may also contribute to symptoms at night. Dust mites, pet dander and pollen carried indoors on your hair or skin during the day can continue to expose you to allergens even after you go to bed.
So nasal congestion doesn't necessarily stop when you close the front door in the evening.
Dry Indoor Air Can Also Irritate Your Nose
In addition to feeling blocked, your nose may feel dry or irritated at night.
Prolonged exposure to dry indoor air has been associated with feelings of dryness and irritation in the nose, throat and eyes. Maintaining a healthy moisture balance is an important part of normal mucous membrane function.
In an air-conditioned or particularly dry bedroom, your nose may therefore feel both dry and uncomfortably congested at the same time.
Why Is Breathing Through Your Nose Important?
Your nose is much more than simply a passage for air.
As you breathe through your nose, the incoming air is filtered, warmed and humidified before travelling further into the lower airways. The mucous membranes lining the nose, together with the mucus on their surface, also help trap airborne particles and remove them from the respiratory tract.
When your nose is blocked, it is easy to start breathing through your mouth instead. This means the air you breathe bypasses the nose's natural filtering, warming and humidifying functions, which can dry out the mucous membranes of the mouth and airways. That's why looking after your nose and its mucous membranes is important even when you don't have a cold.
What Can You Do About a Blocked Nose at Night?
The best approach depends primarily on what is causing the congestion.
If allergies are behind your symptoms, reducing exposure to allergens in the bedroom may help. Changing your bed linen regularly, keeping the bedroom clean and keeping pets out of the bedroom can reduce exposure. During pollen season, it can also be sensible to wash away pollen that has accumulated on your hair and skin during the day.
If your nose and airways feel dry, maintaining their moisture balance can help support normal mucous membrane function.
Persistent nasal congestion, however, should be investigated. If your nose is constantly blocked, the congestion is clearly worse on one side, or you experience other symptoms, there may be an underlying cause such as a structural narrowing of the nasal passages, nasal polyps or chronic inflammation.
How Can WellO2 Support Airway Wellbeing?
WellO2 combines warm steam with adjustable breathing resistance in a single breathing exercise.
The warm steam moisturises the airways and their mucous membranes. The positive pressure helps the steam travel effectively through the airways, while also helping to open the airways and loosen mucus.
When exercising through the nose, the WellO2 nasal mask allows you to inhale warm steam through your nose. This makes moisturising your nose and airways an easy part of your daily breathing exercise routine.
A Good Night Starts with Easier Breathing
There can be many reasons for nasal congestion at night. Simply lying down can affect nasal patency, while allergic rhinitis, allergens and irritation of the mucous membranes can make symptoms worse.
So if your nose repeatedly becomes blocked in the evening or during the night, it doesn't necessarily mean you're coming down with a cold. Looking after the health and wellbeing of your nose and airways is important too.
Sources
Lo S-W, Tsai Y-T, Tsai M-S, Tsai H-Y, Chang G-H. Nasal Patency Across Seated, Supine, and Recumbent Postures in Individuals With and Without Allergic Rhinitis. Ear, Nose & Throat Journal. 2024. DOI: 10.1177/01455613241254434.
Thompson A, Sardana N, Craig TJ. Sleep impairment and daytime sleepiness in patients with allergic rhinitis: the role of congestion and inflammation. Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. 2013;111(6):446–451. DOI: 10.1016/j.anai.2013.05.020.
Wolkoff P. The mystery of dry indoor air – An overview. Environment International. 2018;121(Pt 2):1058–1065. DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2018.10.053.
