The Addicted Nose
by Mark Menestrina, MD, Brighton Hospital
Q: I have a cold and my nose is running, my eyes are watery and my throat is sore. I decided to use some over-the-counter nose drops and the result was instant relief! When the effect wore off, I used the drops again and it seemed like the relief time was shorter. My cold seems to be getting worse and I only feel relief when I use these drops. I need a larger dose and have to dose more often. Have I become addicted to these nose drops? Is that possible?
A: YES! Allow me to explain "addicted nose" dilemma!
First and most important, NEVER use more than the recommended dosage on the box or as prescribed by your doctor. My guess is that when you started using the spray more often and more of it, you were going against the recommended dosage of the "over-the-counter" nose spray.
What you should do NOW:
Discontinue the use of the nose spray and contact your doctor in a few days if things don't clear up. What you have experienced is a temporary chemical attachment (temporary if you are able to give it up.)
The Scientific Answer to "what happened?"
Certain natural body chemicals cause nasal congestion by increasing nasal secretion, while others cause decongestion by inhibiting secretion. The balance between these opposing natural chemicals determines the condition of your nose. The cold virus had caused irritation and an increase in natural congesting chemicals in your nose. The nose spray contained decongestant chemicals artificially made but very much like the ones the body creates naturally. These artificial chemicals dried-up your nose but they also disturbed your body's natural balance. Trying to restore this balance, your nose adjusted by producing more congesting chemicals and less of its own decongestants.
When the effect of the spray wore off, there were more natural congesting chemicals and less natural decongestants than there had been to start with, causing your nose to be stuffier than before using the nose spray. In trying to keep the balance, your nose had literally become dependent on the artificial decongestants in the spray: your nose became addicted. It had built up tolerance; needing more and more of the drops and you must put your nose through "withdrawal symptoms" before it can reestablish its natural balance.
This is the way the body becomes addicted to substances. The substance alters a balance of natural body chemicals; the body adjusts to this alteration by trying to reestablish the proper balance and then the body becomes dependent upon the external supply of the substance.
Dr. Mark Menestrina is the Medical Director of the detox unit at Brighton Hospital. He is a board member of the Livionia Save Our Youth Task Force as well as Building Better Families Through Action. He is Board Certified in Family Practice and certified by the American Society of Addiction Medicine. Dr. Menestrina is a frequent presenter at schools, public events and media presentations. He can be reached at
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or through Shannon Rozell at (810) 355-6994
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