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Last Updated: Jan 10, 2023
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Plucking Your Nose Hair - Reasons Why You Must Stop Doing It Today!

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Dr. Mansoor KhanGeneral Physician • 32 Years Exp.MBBS, Associate Fellow of Industrial Health
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Do you have the habit of plucking your nose hair? As unsightly or awkward they may be, your nose hair can actually play an important role in keeping you healthy. So the next time you grab your tweezers or scissors to pluck your nose hair, do rethink and stop doing it.

The time when you feel like your nose is swamped with thick or dense hair, people often use tweezers or your fingers to pluck them out. Some of them even go to the extent of waxing it off. However, before you get there, be watchful.

There are two kinds of nose hair:

  • Vibrissae: The frontal nose hair that is visible and plucked out from the nose
  • Microscopic cilia: Present at the back of the nose, these are responsible for filtering mucus and moving it to the back of the nose

Here are the reasons why you must stop plucking your nose hair:

  1. It can make you catch infections: When you pluck your front nose hair, you are more prone to catch an infection. Germs and particles near the follicles can get inside, without the Vibrissae.
  2. The danger triangle: The triangular area on the face between your mouth and nose is referred to as a danger triangle. This area is very important for brain function. The veins that carry blood out of the nose tend to converge with the veins that carry blood from the brain. If you pluck the nose hair, it can lead to the germs get carried all the way to the brain and potentially affect it causing conditions of meningitis or brain abscess.
  3. Bacteria and germs outbreak: When the nose hair is plucked or waxed, the entire pore is left exposed to bacteria and other germs to get in. If the cilia and other hairs of the nose are unable to prevent the onset of the germs build-up, then these harmful particles can delve deeper into the path of the body all the way up to the brain.

So, what is the right way to do it then? Trimming is the way to go!

The next time you want to get rid of your nose hair, if its over-grown or getting too irritating for you, consider trimming it instead. As long as you don’t get too close to the skin inside your nose, it will not lead to the danger triangle problem.

Also wash your nose well before trimming your nose hair. Washing out the pathogens from the nose before trimming is important so that it will reduce your chances of catching any infection. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a General Physician.

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