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Does any one use these strips and do they help.
I probably have cough variant asthma i.e I get a continuous dry cough when riding hard or racing.
Trying to breathe through the nose helps, but that goes out of the window when I'm a dribbling mess trying to hang on.
I wondered if these might slow the onset of my coughing.
Answers quickly please I'm racing again tomorrow 😕
No.
...and don't be bloody silly.
Asthma is an inflammatory condition characterised by bronchospasm.
Nasal strips just hold your nasal passages open a bit more.
I am slowly realising that if my asthma kicks off it's because I haven't been drinking enough. Similar condition to yours. Nasal strips dont work.
Bugger, I'm like Captain Hook in my local peleton but instead of ticking they know I'm coming because they hear the coughing 😳
They politely refer to it as a 'testers cough'.
What will help you is relaxing and getting plenty of sleep.
crikey - Member
Is right, immune system will the cause but it can be escalated with stress hormones such as coritisol which will be reduced if you stay away from strength and void lack of sleep etc.
Your immnune system is best modified during sleep. Avoid triggers.
Its no cure but relax, eat and sleep well and enjoy your race.
It's most likely due to an increase in the rate and depth of your respiratory rate; chugging in lots of dry air has an irritant effect on your upper respiratory tract, triggering your cough reflex.
As Obi says, the only sensible thing I can think of to combat it is making sure you are well hydrated.
Nasal strips would probably make it worse; by artificially opening up your nose, you would reduce the warming moistening effect of your turbinates; the folds which cause turbulence in the air you breathe in, which helps to reduce the irritation caused by dry air, and helps in gaseous exchange; warmed moistened air is niiiiice for your lungs...
...there is probably a psychological component to it as well in that you expect to cough when going hard, so cough when going hard...
Poor mans inhaler for racing; three or four drops of Olbas oil onto your tongue before setting off. Tastes foul, but leaves you feeling like you can breathe the world in...
Anti histimines?
Well you post a video of you doing that first and then I might.
Though I might drop bit of Olbas on my jersey like the old days.
Anti histimines? could mild ones help??
Are you using Ventolin before you ride? That's what most of us Asthmatics do.
Don't know a lot about this Cough variant asthma, but a persistent dry cough is/can be a symptom of "bog standard" Asthma
No I don't take any medication. I only get this when racing or training hard. As soon as I stop it stops.
I also produce a lot of snot at the same time.
Edit. I've always had a feeling that it might be triggered by cold air on my upper chest as well?
I have had this problem intermittently at races recently and like Obi have concluded it is down to poor hydration. I did an evening race the week before last that nearly killed me and my lungs felt burnt for about 3 days afterward. I put it down to a day in the office when I was too busy to drink enough and only had cups of tea which made things worse.
I had wondered about the nasal strips thing too - so useful comments above.
I never thought dehydration could be to blame. I'm often out on site miles from shops and the only fluid I get is the cuppa that morning. So I have to quaff loads of water on the way to the race.
I think water on the way to the race is too late - it won't get into your system fast enough. But I'm no expert...
You're not the only one Old G, I get muscous nose runs in cold weather-it can cause hypersensitivity immune reactions.
Maybe you are little sensitive to weather change.
See your GP before buying loads of meds, they might be able to give you something to use before big events.
Also need to check with organisers to make sure its not on their blood doping charts-hey I dunno you could be a pro racer but doubt you'd be on stw...
A Buff over the nose and mouth helps me in the winter - its gets a bit damp after a while, and then seems to moisten the air you suck in regardless of whether its through your hooter or cake-hole.
It might work the same in the summer, worth a try?
Git: lot's of snot can be a sign that you're eating / drinking too much dairy food. are you a bit partial to the cheese board?
milk / cheese makes me nore snotty / wheezy than usual, it's one of the more common asthma allergies.