# One Nostril or Two? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 8, 2003, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950 "2003-07-08T06:07:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![jakeboy76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/76d3ee/32.png) [@jakeboy76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jakeboy76)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950/1 "2003-07-08T06:07:16Z")
I’ve heard rumors that humans only breath out of one nostril at a time, depending on which side of their brain is being used at that moment – i.e., if you’re in a logical, or left-brain mood, you’ll breath out of your right nostril, and if you’re in an intuitive, or right-brain mood, you’ll breath out of your left nostril, because the left brain controls the right side of the body and vice-versa. Is this true? I’ve observed my own breathing, and I would swear that this is the case (as would other people I’ve talked to), but others insist that both nostrils are used together all of the time. Can anyone help? ---
**Author:** ![Tarantula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e274bd/32.png) [@Tarantula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tarantula)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 10:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950/2 "2003-07-08T10:18:22Z")
Unless there is some sort of blockage, due to a head cold or the like, both nostrils are used simultaneously for breathing. Hope this helps. ---
**Author:** ![Algernon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a183cd/32.png) [@Algernon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algernon)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950/3 "2003-07-08T13:53:34Z")
**Tarantula** , I don’t believe that is correct. We only [breathe through a single nostril at a time](http://www.e-breathing.com/). > [@](#): > > Within each nasal cavity there is a swell body on the nasal fossae (ridges in the nasal epithelium) that, when engorged with blood, swells and decreases the flow of air on that side. This happens every 20-30 minutes on one side or the other thus allowing the respiratory epithelium to recover from desiccation. Do a Google search on “swell bodies” + nose + respiratory and you’ll get more cites. Here is a [SDMB thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=151047&highlight=nostril) where this is discussed briefly. (There was a different, more comprehensive thread I was searching for, but it must have been lost in the Winter of Our Missed Content.) ---
**Author:** ![Algernon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a183cd/32.png) [@Algernon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algernon)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950/4 "2003-07-08T13:56:06Z")
By the way, welcome to the SDMB **jakeboy76**. May your stay be long and fruitful. And more to your OP, which nostril is being used has nothing to do with which side of your brain you are using at any particular time. See my cite in the above post. ---
**Author:** ![Dogface](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@Dogface](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogface)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950/5 "2003-07-08T14:05:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Algernon \* > \*\* > We only [breathe through a single nostril at a time](http://www.e-breathing.com/). \*\* I just took a few breaths. I refute the theory with my simple reality. Both nostrils, simultaneously. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950/6 "2003-07-08T14:10:23Z")
I seem to be breathing through both nostrils right now also, although one is allowing more air in than the other. I think that’s mostly because of congestion, though I suspect I have a deviated septum. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950/7 "2003-07-08T14:16:00Z")
> [@](#): > > if you’re in a logical, or left-brain mood, you’ll breath out of your right nostril, and if you’re in an intuitive, or right-brain mood, you’ll breath out of your left nostril, because the left brain controls the right side of the body and vice-versa It’s true that the hemispheres of the brain control the opposite sides of the body, but - and if someone here knows more about this than I do, please correct me - I think the idea that you can be in a right- or left-brain mood sounds like baloney (I think the same of giving the hemispheres anthropomorphic qualities). Other than stroke or trauma victims, you’re always using both sides of your brain. Some tasks may call for you to use one side more than the other, but I don’t know about moods - and brain functions aren’t so localized that that would make sense. In addition, I think that would mean you’d have to have _two_ centers to control breathing in your brain, each handling one nostril somehow. That strikes me as implausible. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950/8 "2003-07-08T14:21:19Z")
> [@](#): > > if you’re in a logical, or left-brain mood, you’ll breath out of your right nostril, and if you’re in an intuitive, or right-brain mood, you’ll breath out of your left nostril, because the left brain controls the right side of the body and vice-versa It’s true that the hemispheres of the brain control the opposite sides of the body, but - and if someone here knows more about this than I do, please correct me - I think the idea that you can be in a right- or left-brain mood sounds like baloney (I think the same of giving the hemispheres anthropomorphic qualities). Other than stroke or trauma victims, you’re always using both sides of your brain. Some tasks may call for you to use one side more than the other, but I don’t know about moods - and brain functions aren’t so localized that that would make sense. In addition, I think that would mean you’d have to have _two_ centers to control breathing in your brain, each handling one nostril somehow. That strikes me as implausible. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950/9 "2003-07-08T16:18:29Z")
Why is it them that you get a noticable feeling of less throughput through the nose when one nostril is blocked? ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950/10 "2003-07-08T20:10:45Z")
Sigh…I think we ought to call it Bricker’s Rule… There is a nasal cycle, as Algernon describes. It does NOT, in properly functioning nasal passages, completely block the flow of air through that nostril; it merely restricts the flow. I have read research that contradicts the cited reason for the cycle. Instead of “recovering from desiccation,” the nasal cycle (these researchers claim) changes the flow of air so that the sense of smell can recover from constant exposure (in fact, they say that the flow pattern changes so that one can smell different odors on each side). Again, in normal individuals, both nostrils admit air, but there will usually be a sense that one is more “open” than the other. And no, I don’t think it’s got anything to do with the sides of the brain – breathing is controlled by the brainstem, which isn’t really involved in the “left brain = thinking, right brain = intuition” business. Also, both nostrils lead to the same trachea, so there’s nothing to the “cerebral breathing” nonsense that some yoga fans are pushing. ---
**Author:** ![Algernon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a183cd/32.png) [@Algernon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algernon)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-nostril-or-two/186950/11 "2003-07-08T21:31:51Z")
I now have time to post again. **Nametag** is correct. Shame on me for not pointing out in my first post that the nasal cycle does not completely block out one nostril at at time. It is not an all or nothing situation. Clearly, with a hearty intake of breath, there is air flowing into both nostrils. I had wondered for many, many years why I had the very definite sense that my nostrils seemed to alternate during simple restful breathing. It is always a weird, yet sublime, feeling as my nose “switches sides”. The wondering came to a stop when the physiological mechanism was explained to me right here on the SDMB! The hypothesis that the cycle is to improve the sense of smell vs “recovering from desiccation” sounds intuitively right to me.