Center for Diseases Control and Prevention reports that approximately 14% of Americans face sinus problems, and around 20 million people visit their physicians due to sinus problems. And if you are one of them, you would know how bad a sinus problem can be. Hence, you would look for ways to get rid of the runny nose, constant headache, and stuffy nose at any cost.
Therefore, you most likely have heard that an air purifier is responsible for a sinus problem. But, what’s the reality? Do air purifiers cause sinus problems?
So, here’s the short answer.
An air purifier won’t cause you a sinus problem. An air purifier will only filter the air to remove pollen, dust, and germs from it. On the contrary, the sinus is caused by the common cold and allergies. Thus, you can use the air purifier even if you have a sinus problem.
Nonetheless, air purifiers might sometimes hurt your nose and cause bleeding. Thus, you should know the pros and cons of using an air purifier to use it appropriately. Henceforth, we will also include these points in our discussion.
Contents
What Are Sinuses?
Sinuses are tissue lining that causes your sinusitis problem. This description may seem pretty fishy, so we are going deep with the discussion. The sinuses refer to four cavities within our head (two frontal and maxillary). A thin and narrow channel connects these cavities, and the sinus produces mucus.
The mucus will drain through the nasal passage of your nose and help remove bacteria and dust from your nose to offer you a healthy lifestyle. When we face sinusitis or sinus problem, the mucus produced by the sinus cavities is trapped inside. Consequently, we will face runny or stuffy noses. Plus, it might cause a continuous headache as the mucus is trapped, and your nasal passage is suffering from bacterial attacks due to sinusitis.
Now, the main question is what causes the sinus problem? Usually, allergies and long colds are the primary reason for sinusitis. But is it linked with air purifiers anyway?
To find the answer, keep reading the article.
Do Air Purifiers Cause Sinus Problems?
First, we have to understand the causes of sinus problems and how an air purifier works to know whether or not air purifiers are responsible for sinusitis.
So, let’s break down the first part of this question, the reasons for sinusitis. As Harvard Medical School suggests, sinus problem is caused mainly by staying in cold places for a long period and allergic attacks. Thus, sitting or working for hours in an over-humid area will stop the mucus flow from the sinuses to your nasal passage and allow bacteria to attack the sinus. Consequently, you will experience swelling, cough, congestion, stuffy nose, and even fever due to sinusitis.
Thus, we can conclude that any device that increases the moisture level in your room is responsible for sinus problems. But do air filters increase or decrease humidity in the air? The second part f the question will answer it.
An air purifier is designed to remove germs, bacteria, pollen, dust, and allergic elements from the air. It may work with filters or filterless. In fact, HEPA filters are used widely to get rid of allergic symptoms, which is another culprit for sinusitis.
An air filter doesn’t have any role to play in your home’s humidity level. Thus, an air purifier doesn’t cause sinus issues generally. Nonetheless, if you face sinus problems even after installing a high-end and performance-centric air purifier at your home, the problem could be something else. It includes:
- Your air purifier isn’t big enough to purify the air from the indoor space
- You haven’t cleaned the machine for a while, and so bacteria have developed inside it
- Your carpet and floor isn’t properly cleaned
- Your fan and furniture are dusty and may contain allergic elements
- You might have placed your air purifier in the wrong location of your home
Usually, it would help if you used a good-quality air purifier to enjoy a bacteria-free indoor to combat sinusitis. Thus, getting a battery-operated air purifier with 100-250 square feet coverage will be of great help for your health.
Why Does My Air Purifier Make My Nose Hurt?
Although an air purifier isn’t responsible for sinusitis, many people complained that the machine hurts their noses. So, why does it happen?
1. Unstable humidity
Air purifiers will soak in the air and release it back indoors after purifying it with its filters. This scenario causes a sudden change of humidity in the indoor air. As the humidity level becomes unstable, it comes as a surprise to your sinus.
Consequently, you will experience pain and inflammation as the sinus tries to cope with the sudden change. At the worst, you will see a nosebleed. We recommend you set your indoor moisture level at a relaxed state.
2. Inappropriate moisture-level
Like unstable humidity due to the air purifier, lack of adequate moisture in the indoor air can cause hurt your nose to cause a nosebleed. Often, air purifiers will release drier air after filtering it. Thus your nose inhales dry air and starts soring. You will most likely face a nosebleed if exposed to the dry air coming from the air purifier for an extended period.
Thus, you can opt for a humidifier to combat the problem. You may choose the Pure Enrichment® MistAire™ Ultrasonic Cool Mist Humidifier to perfectly control the humidity level of your indoor space. The humidifier will humidify the dry air shortly to help get rid of the nosebleed due to dryness.
3. Ozone production
Ozone gas production is responsible for inflammation, and it can attack your nasal passage, throat, and lungs simultaneously. Henceforth, an air purifier with ozone technology will most likely hurt your nose, and it could be problematic for long exposure to the filters.
Plus, older ionic air purifiers can emit ozone gas and hurt your nose. Thus, you should avoid using ozone gas and ionizer-based air purifiers if your nose hurts. It is also avoidable for people with a sinus problem.
4. Inappropriate placement of the air purifier
Although you would want to keep your air purifier close to you to enjoy the purest air, it can have some tradeoffs too. One of the main tradeoffs of placing the air purifier in your bedroom or living room is that you will inhale drier air. Air purifiers release drier air, and staying too close to it means you will inhale the direr air.
Henceforth, dry air will cause nose soring, and it will hurt your nose seriously and may even cause nosebleeds at the worse.
You may follow the guideline of this video to know where you should place your air purifier for the best results.
How Air Purifiers Can Affect Your Nose – Pros and Cons
Since most people think air purifiers cause sinus problems, they consider it better not mess with the device. Well, it’s entirely wrong since the advantages of using an air purifier at home will surely awe-stuck your mind. And, of course, like every device, an air purifier has a few drawbacks.
The pros of air purifiers
An air purifier will filter the indoor air to offer you a healthy environment. Therefore, it comes with excellent benefits.
1. Eliminates allergens and bacteria
Carbon filters and HEPA filters can remove dust, allergens, pollens, and bacteria from the air with up to a 99.97% success rate. Plus, it restricts most airborne contaminants to offer you the cleanest air. So, you will get great relief from the allergens, and it can be a great help for those who suffer from allergic symptoms.
2. Fresh air
You will love how air purifiers improve the quality of indoor air. It filters the air from pollutants and ensures you an excellent ambiance with odor-free indoors. In fact, many air purifiers allow you to use essential oil fragrances with them to get your favorite fragrance around the home. Also, a carbon filter will soak the funny odors for a fresher indoor.
3. Better sleep
Since air purifiers ensure a cleaner and healthier indoor, it improves your sleeping facility. The device removes microorganisms from the indoor space and boosts your mood tremendously. Therefore, you will enjoy a better slip each night.
The cons of air purifiers
Although an air purifier is an excellent investment for a cleaner and healthier home indoor, it has a few setbacks. So, you need to be aware of it.
1. UV and ozone production
Filterless air purifiers will work mostly with ozone, ionizer, and UV rays to filter the air. UV rays and ozone can hurt your health if constantly exposed to them. Henceforth, you should avoid using these filterless air purifiers.
2. Nosebleed
Since air purifiers generally release direr air in the indoor space, sitting too close to it will cause nosebleeds and sores. We have discussed the reasons for it elaborately in the previous sections. Long story short, you should place the device a bit away from you to avoid such issues.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are air purifiers good for sinus problems?
Air purifiers improve the air quality at home. Thus, it helps you remedy sinus problems by eliminating pollen, allergens, and dust with excellent performance.
Do air purifiers dry out your nose?
Yes, sitting too close to air purifiers for an extended period might dry out your nose. These devices release drier air to dry out your nose and cause a burning sensation at times.
Can an air purifier give you a bloody nose?
If you stay too close to the air purifier, its varying humidity level will cause bleeding of your nose due to dry air. So, be aware to not sit too close to the device for hours.
Do air purifiers help with sinus headaches?
Yes, air purifiers with HEPA and carbon filters remove pollen and allergen from indoor air. So, you will get relief from sinus problems and headaches for sure.
Conclusion
Do air purifiers cause sinus problems? No, not at all; an air purifier will never cause you sinusitis. In fact, air purifiers will improve indoor air quality and ensure better sleep. Nonetheless, a dirty air purifier will have reduced performance, and so, it might cause soring and burning sensation with drier air. Therefore, we recommend you maintain and clean your air purifier properly to enjoy the best outcome from it. Also, you should buy a high-quality and reputable air purifier to enjoy the healthiest air.
