# Sniffles in the morning **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 22, 2005, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413 "2005-10-22T08:38:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cat\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/96bed5/32.png) [@Cat\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Jones)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/1 "2005-10-22T08:38:12Z")
Why do you sometimes wake up all sniffly in the morning ? You know, half runny half blocked nose with no other cold like symptoms. It’s unlikely to be allergies. Was the room too stuffy ? You need to leave a window open to let more oxygen in ? (but I don’t know what this would do) Was your head too low to allow proper ‘drainage’ ? I’m not asking for mediacl ‘advice’, just a possible explanation for the phenomenon. ---
**Author:** ![TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/51bf81/32.png) [@TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/2 "2005-10-22T14:17:45Z")
When you sleep, you slowly dehydrate. This came up recently in a thread about people weighing less in the morning (due to water loss during sleep) than later in the day. I’d imagine that the drying out effect causes mucous, etc. to get thicker, hence “stuffed up.” ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/3 "2005-10-22T14:43:39Z")
In many cases it is allergies, especially due to dust mites. Bedding is the favorite haunt of dust mites. Also, if you notice this symptom after recently starting to run your heater, you may have dust or mold in your heating system which aggravates allergies to either. Why do you think it’s unlikely to be allergies? Have you gone for allergy testing? ---
**Author:** ![lorinada](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b5e925/32.png) [@lorinada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lorinada)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/4 "2005-10-22T16:11:08Z")
My guess is that it’s allergies, too, from my own experience. I never woke up like this until I had developed allergies. Similarly, I never woke up croupy until I developed asthma. And, now that the drugs for both are so much better and longer-lasting, I seldom wake up sniffly or croupy anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/96bed5/32.png) [@Cat\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Jones)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/5 "2005-10-22T22:07:47Z")
I “don’t want to have” allergies :rolleyes: so I think I’ll try drinking gallons of water pre sleep (altho’ I’m aware this has it’s own risk 😉 ) Seriously as far as I know I don’t have allergies to anything and it isn’t enough of a problem to warrant getting tested, I don’t really need an allergy test to tell me I should clean more often ! I was just wondering, thanks guys. ---
**Author:** ![flamingbananas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f4b2a3/32.png) [@flamingbananas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flamingbananas)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/6 "2005-10-22T23:13:01Z")
> [@lorinada](#): > > My guess is that it’s allergies, too, from my own experience. I never woke up like this until I had developed allergies. Similarly, I never woke up croupy until I developed asthma. Asthma sucks, doesn’t it? I’ll just echo others, you prolly just have some mild dust mite allergy that becomes aggrivated when you sleep. ---
**Author:** ![parsnip](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parsnip/32/4564_2.png) [@parsnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/parsnip)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/7 "2005-10-23T02:08:53Z")
To echo to the google ads that appeared in the bottom of this thread before I logged in: Neti Pot for that evening and morning slosh out. Allergy encasing pillow cover and mattress pads. there was no ad for this, but If you’ve been outside during a pollen high day, wash hair before bed. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/8 "2005-10-23T06:06:55Z")
During sleep, the hormone that staves off allergic symptoms is greatly reduced. That’s why a lot of people are stuffy and sniffly only in the mornings. Adding in the dust mites and just plain dust that you’re exposed to during sleep doesn’t help, either. And FWIW, literally drinking gallons of water would lead to water toxicity. Which a mother in Utah recently was charged with killing her daughter with while using as punishment. ---
**Author:** ![Nilor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a4c791/32.png) [@Nilor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nilor)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/9 "2005-10-23T07:08:08Z")
Odd…I have fairly bad allergies few a few weeks in the summer and I always wakeup clear… Oh, and Apparently google is telling you that it’s dust mites. All 4 ads are about how to remove them. ---
**Author:** ![Sarah\_Woodruff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df788c/32.png) [@Sarah\_Woodruff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarah_Woodruff)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/10 "2005-10-23T07:25:09Z")
I would third (or fourth?) the dust-mite allergy opinion. I’m asthmatic and I’m allergic to dust-mites, and I often wake up slightly wheezy or blocked up in the morning. Dust-mites sort of congregate in people’s pillows, eiderdowns and mattresses, so I often get them professionally cleaned. That might help. Of course, I also have the phenomenon of being clear-nosed all day, but as soon as I lie down to sleep my nose gets somewhat stuffy. Rather annoying. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/11 "2005-10-23T07:50:29Z")
I often wake up stuffy, and I’m also allergic to dust mites. If that’s not the case for you, **Cat Jones** , congrats - but I’m inclined to think that it is. Cleaning helps, but nothing really eliminates the little buggers. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/96bed5/32.png) [@Cat\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Jones)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/12 "2005-10-23T09:32:33Z")
OK I’m coming round to the dust mite allergy theory - I’ll investigate. BTW for **trublmakr** and anyone else I worried, those were figurative “gallons of water” I was going to drink not literally _gallons_, just a good large glass. ---
**Author:** ![Seven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Seven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seven)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sniffles-in-the-morning/327413/13 "2005-10-23T10:21:22Z")
If you can get an allergy test, I recommend it. I just had my first this year and found it quite interesting. The usual suspects showed up (grasses - really bad reactions). I tested positive to dust mites and a few molds. The one shocker was the reaction I had to dogs. It isn’t going to make me get rid of my pooches, but it did explain alot.