# How does Olbas Oil clear your nose?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-olbas-oil-clear-your-nose/260231>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 17, 2004, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-olbas-oil-clear-your-nose/260231 "2004-08-17T12:36:42Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\
**Post date:** [August 17, 2004, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-olbas-oil-clear-your-nose/260231/1 "2004-08-17T12:36:42Z")

</div>

I have a cold at the moment, and have been using a few drops of [Olbas Oil](http://www.olbas.com/olbasoil.htm) on a tissue or dabbed under my nose to clear the congestion.

My question is, how does this work? I assume that menthol is the active ingredient, but what is it about menthol vapours that can clear out your nasal passages?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2004, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-olbas-oil-clear-your-nose/260231/2 "2004-08-26T12:54:26Z")

</div>

What, nobody nose?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Bimble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b2d939/32.png) [@Bimble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bimble)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2004, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-olbas-oil-clear-your-nose/260231/3 "2004-08-26T15:03:41Z")

</div>

Ooo!!

On the same kinda topic, a Latvian chum of mine gave me the BEST cure/home remedy for a blocked nose EVER!!

Raw.

Grated.

Horseradish.

:eek:

And it WORKS!!!

Within a nano-second of swallowing a teaspoon of the stuff (while my eyes watered and I slowly got my vision back (one synaesthete a-comin’ up!) from the nasal equivalent of a kick in the head from a moose) my nose was INSTANTLY cleared and remained so for AGES!!  
So how do strong smells - like Olbas Oil - clear blocked noses?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2004, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-olbas-oil-clear-your-nose/260231/4 "2004-08-26T19:20:49Z")

</div>

Some strong odorants most likely tend to shrink the tissues lining the airways and allow an increase airflow, just as anti-histamines do.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Aestivalis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Aestivalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aestivalis)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2004, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-olbas-oil-clear-your-nose/260231/5 "2004-08-26T21:32:23Z")

</div>

> [@Bimble](#):
>
> Within a nano-second of swallowing a teaspoon of the stuff (while my eyes watered and I slowly got my vision back (one synaesthete a-comin’ up!) from the nasal equivalent of a kick in the head from a moose) my nose was INSTANTLY cleared and remained so for AGES!!

Do you have to swallow it, or just hold it in your mouth? I can’t imagine washing it down with water would do the trick.