What could be worse than sitting next to a crying baby during your flight? If you’ve ever had the misfortune of having sinus pressure when traveling, you know how uncomfortable and even painful the experience can be. In fact, when travelers have severe symptoms, they sometimes postpone the trip until things clear up because it would be excruciating to fly in a pressurized cabin with severe congestion and swelling.Whether your next airplane trip is for business or pleasure, here are a couple of methods you can use travel and breathe freely:

Things You Can Try at Home to Relieve Sinus Pressure When Traveling

A time-honored method to relieve sinus pressure is to drink a hot steaming bowl of soup, especially when the recipe comes from your grandmother’s kitchen. When soup is impractical, you can benefit from other hot liquids, such as a cup of herbal tea.The rising steam from the cup and the warming liquid you drink help to stimulate the cilia in your mucus membranes to reduce congestion.Some passengers find relief for their sinus problems by visiting an acupuncturist, an approach noted by a report from the U.S. government’s PubMed Health on treating chronic sinusitis.Place a warm compress on your face. All you need to do is soak a towel in warm water, then squeeze out excess moisture and apply it to your face for about 5 minutes at a time.Eat spicy food. This is a quick and easy way to unclog your painful sinus passages.

Just Prior to Boarding the Plane

Nasal decongestants, whether over-the-counter or prescribed by your physician can help reduce sinus issues while traveling by airplane, noted the Centers for Disease Control’s report on travelers’ health and air travel.

Of course, you must make sure that decongestants are not contraindicated when taking any other medications or herbal supplements. The CDC also pointed out that patients can resort to pain-relieving drugs as well as anti-inflammatory medications when sinus pain would otherwise be hard to bear.Remember to drink plenty of non-alcoholic fluids while in flight, as hydration is key for avoiding irritation to the nasal passages.If you’ve tried various remedies at home and on the plane only to be frustrated because they didn’t solve your painful sinus pressure when traveling, you’ll be glad to know that balloon sinuplasty, a relatively new method that has been approved by the FDA since 2005, is another option to relieve these symptoms. Balloon sinuplasty, a procedure available at the American Sinus Institute, involves a medical professional placing a small balloon into your sinus cavity. The balloon is then inflated to gently adjust the structure of your nasal passages.To learn more about balloon sinuplasty benefits about this procedure or to set up an appointment, please connect with American Sinus Institute before you plan your next trip.