From a stuffy head to that whistling in your nostrils, breathing’s no breeze this time of year.

“When your nose is exposed to cold, it runs,” period, explains Dr. Michael Benninger, chair of the Head and Neck Institute at the Cleveland Clinic.

That’s because our nasal passages are designed to warm and humidify air before it gets to the lungs. In colder temperatures, the nose overcompensates by producing extra mucus. It can thicken when exposed to the dry air outside and irritate your throat or your sinuses, those hollow cavities behind your nose and forehead.