# Why doesn't air come out of my nose when I inflate a balloon? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 22, 2013, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916 "2013-08-22T22:58:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![trabajabamos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/47e85d/32.png) [@trabajabamos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trabajabamos)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2013, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/1 "2013-08-22T22:58:12Z")
I can breathe through my nose. And my mouth! Discounting seasonal allergies I’m great at respiration, generally speaking. At some point, I learned how to inflate a balloon _with my mouth_. That is, I can consciously restrict the outflow of air through my nose and instead, opt to pressurize the air in my mouth for a productive purpose. Which is cool, but kind of confusing to me. How can this be!? Am I plugging that airway with my tongue? Am I constricting some magical nose sphincter? I’m sitting here trying to consciously close my nasal passages and I can’t do it. Fishing around with my tongue, I can find no hole to plug. I’m trying to squeeze various muscles in my throat to no effect. And yet, all I need do is imagine myself inflating a balloon- keeping my mouth closed- and, voila, air pressure! …But I’ll be damned if I can feel any aspect of my physical being effecting this miracle. What’s up with that? ---
**Author:** ![aNewLeaf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ac91a4/32.png) [@aNewLeaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aNewLeaf)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2013, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/2 "2013-08-22T23:08:14Z")
IIRC, the epiglottis is the flap that steers air in your throat. I’d guess the reason you can’t feel it is that there aren’t any nerves for sensation. ---
**Author:** ![chrisk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@chrisk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chrisk)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2013, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/3 "2013-08-22T23:09:03Z")
Cool question actually. I’m not great at blowing up balloons, but I can manage it. I think, experimenting with blowing in different way with a finger in front of my nose, 😉 that it has something to do with stiffening the muscles in the upper lip and mustache area. When I stick out my upper lip and tense those muscles, there’s little to no airflow through the nostrils, either in or out. I hope this helps, and I’d love to hear from someone who’s got more book-learning about this part of the body. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2013, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/4 "2013-08-23T00:52:33Z")
You (unconsciously) raise your palatine velum, better known as the soft palate. > **[Soft palate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palatine_velum)** > > The soft palate (also known as the velum, palatal velum, or muscular palate) is, in mammals, the soft tissue constituting the back of the roof of the mouth. The soft palate is part of the palate of the mouth; the other part is the hard palate. The soft palate is distinguished from the hard palate at the front of the mouth in that it does not contain bone. > The five muscles of the soft palate play important roles in swallowing and breathing. The muscles are: > These muscles are innervated by the ... ---
**Author:** ![eastcheap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8491ac/32.png) [@eastcheap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eastcheap)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2013, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/5 "2013-08-23T01:07:19Z")
Not always unconsciously. Singers and wind-instrument players develop a good deal of control over it (it’s a technique you can use to “color” your sound). Heck, I don’t even have to say “ahhh” at the doctor’s. I just move everything out of the way. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2013, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/6 "2013-08-23T03:15:42Z")
The air doesn’t come out of your nose because you’re instinctively separating your nose from your mouth when you exhale, using your soft palate. There are three kinds of breaths which can all be achieved by involving different parts of your nasal passages. You can either breathe from your nose, breathe from your mouth, or breathe from both at the same time. I played saxophone for the better part of a decade. This means I had to develop conscious breath control, as **eastcheap** mentioned. You can consciously control your soft palate, it just takes practice. If you want to try and “feel” this a little more, practice this exercise while paying attention to how your tongue and soft palate interact: Say the word “dung.” Feel how the “ng” sound closes your throat? Now breathe without opening your throat. Even if your mouth stays open, the breath will only go through your nose. Practice alternating the “ng” sound (closed throat) with “ah” (open throat) while humming, inhaling, humming, inhaling (etc). This will really help you get a feel for moving your soft palate up and down. After you master this, you can try an advanced technique. Close your throat (say ng!). Now inhale and exhale through your nose. After a few breaths, concentrate on keeping the breath going. Now purse your lips and puff up your cheeks with air. Hold it there with your cheek muscles while you keep breathing through your nose. Now open your mouth just a crack and use your cheek muscles to push out the air. You can do this while still breathing in and out of your nose. This is the first step of a technique called “circular breathing,” which is what Kenny G did to play the longest note ever recorded on a saxophone. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2013, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/7 "2013-08-23T03:59:43Z")
And the didgeridoo! (Um, not Kenny G, I mean in general, circular breathing is what didgeridoo players do to sustain those gorgeous tones almost indefinitely.) Yes, I didn’t mean that one cannot consciously control the upper palate, just that the OP when blowing up a balloon is doing it unconsciously. Sorry for the confusion. ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2013, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/8 "2013-08-23T07:06:14Z")
I don’t need to imagine inflating a balloon to do that. If I choose to breathe through my nose, that’s where the air flows. If I choose to breathe through my mouth, that’s where the air goes. In and out. In fact I find it harder to let air flow freely through both. But as you said, it doesn’t feel like there’s much feedback from the muscles and flesh involved. ---
**Author:** ![AaronX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7bcc69/32.png) [@AaronX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AaronX)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2013, 8:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/9 "2013-08-23T08:29:40Z")
I wonder - if you can’t consciously choose which to breathe through - nose or mouth - how do you swim? ---
**Author:** ![J-P\_L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/j-p_l/32/3156_2.png) [@J-P\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/J-P_L)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2013, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/10 "2013-08-23T15:47:36Z")
And it works both ways, as when you are drinking from a straw. ---
**Author:** ![congodwarf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@congodwarf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/congodwarf)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2013, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/11 "2013-08-23T16:41:12Z")
> [@AaronX](#): > > I wonder - if you can’t consciously choose which to breathe through - nose or mouth - how do you swim? I am amazed at how many adults I know who still pinch their noses closed in order to swim under water. In fact, my mother and at least one of my sisters still do it. It never occurred to me that they actually didn’t know how, or couldn’t, consciously raise their soft palate. Then again, I’m amazed that some people actually need a tongue depressor so the doctor can look at their tonsils. Maybe it’s because I was prone to strep as a child but dropping the back of my tongue and raising my soft palate at the same time or individually are completely natural movements for me. What I want to know is how do these people breathe through only their mouths when someone farts next to them if they can’t close off their noses. After this past week, I’d have probably had a dog fart induced nervous breakdown if I hadn’t been able to shut off my nose. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![trabajabamos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/47e85d/32.png) [@trabajabamos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trabajabamos)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2013, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/12 "2013-08-23T17:57:17Z")
> [@Rachellelogram](#): > > The air doesn’t come out of your nose because you’re instinctively separating your nose from your mouth when you exhale, using your soft palate. There are three kinds of breaths which can all be achieved by involving different parts of your nasal passages. You can either breathe from your nose, breathe from your mouth, or breathe from both at the same time. I played saxophone for the better part of a decade. This means I had to develop conscious breath control, as **eastcheap** mentioned. You can consciously control your soft palate, it just takes practice. If you want to try and “feel” this a little more, practice this exercise while paying attention to how your tongue and soft palate interact: > > Say the word “dung.” Feel how the “ng” sound closes your throat? Now breathe without opening your throat. Even if your mouth stays open, the breath will only go through your nose. Practice alternating the “ng” sound (closed throat) with “ah” (open throat) while humming, inhaling, humming, inhaling (etc). This will really help you get a feel for moving your soft palate up and down. > > After you master this, you can try an advanced technique. Close your throat (say ng!). Now inhale and exhale through your nose. After a few breaths, concentrate on keeping the breath going. Now purse your lips and puff up your cheeks with air. Hold it there with your cheek muscles while you keep breathing through your nose. Now open your mouth just a crack and use your cheek muscles to push out the air. You can do this while still breathing in and out of your nose. This is the first step of a technique called “circular breathing,” which is what Kenny G did to play the longest note ever recorded on a saxophone. Excellent! Thank you. And now that you mention it, maybe I _can_ somewhat feel… something happening as I attempt these exercises of yours. It’s rather subtle, but still. Something. ---
**Author:** ![trabajabamos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/47e85d/32.png) [@trabajabamos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trabajabamos)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2013, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/13 "2013-08-23T17:58:32Z")
> [@AaronX](#): > > I wonder - if you can’t consciously choose which to breathe through - nose or mouth - how do you swim? On the rare occasion that I try breathing underwater it goes poorly for me. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2013, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/14 "2013-08-23T18:48:07Z")
Because it’s easier for it to come out of your ears! ---
**Author:** ![Washoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecae2f/32.png) [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2013, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-air-come-out-of-my-nose-when-i-inflate-a-balloon/666916/15 "2013-08-24T02:37:45Z")
> [@congodwarf](#): > > After this past week, I’d have probably had a dog fart induced nervous breakdown if I hadn’t been able to shut off my nose. 😃 You didn’t have a wine cork handy?