Sure, it’s socially unacceptable, and downright gross, but sometimes to get those hard-to-reach boogers, you have to give your nose a little pick. But are you clearing your nasal passages or just making yourself, in addition to everyone else, sick?
“Sticking your finger up there introduces germs and bacteria to your nose,” says Stephen Segebrecht, ear, nose and throat doctor at Lawrence Otolaryngology. “The germs under your fingernail can cause a virus to get into your body.”
Segebrecht says that some of the diseases that can wiggle their way in through your nose include the common cold, strep and pneumonia infections.
He recommends starting off blowing your nose with household tissues. But if that doesn’t work, Segebrecht says using a salt or saline spay will help loosen some of the stubborn mucus. And if even that fails to do the trick, he says that picking can be used as a last resort, but stresses that people should thoroughly wash their hands before digging for gold.
Verdict—bad for you.
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