Why does nose run when you cry

The body can do some pretty cool things. SELF does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Any information published on this website or by this brand is not intended as a substitute for medical advice, and you should not take any action before consulting with a healthcare professional. Amy is a freelance writer who covers health, fitness, outdoors, and travel. She holds a B. Read more. Excess tears can also flood the drainage ducts that lead into the nasal passage, hence the runny nose.

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But why does your nose run? Read on to find out the whole story. To understand why your nose runs, you need to know what mucus say: MYOO-kus is. This is the gooey, sticky, slimy material that's made inside your nose also known as snot. Believe it or not, your nose and sinuses make about a quart of snot every day! For something kind of gross, mucus does a lot of good. It keeps germs, dirt, pollen, and bacteria from getting into your lungs by stopping them in your nose.

But sometimes mucus doesn't stay put. You have a cold or the flu : When you have either one of these, your nose goes into mucus-making overdrive to keep the germ invaders out of your lungs and the rest of your body, where they might make you even sicker than you already are.