Sickness may cause irritation in the throat and in nasal tissue as a result of stomach acid rising up from the digestive tract.
Sleeping horizontally elevates blood flow to the head and face, causing worsened symptoms of your child’s sickness.
Lying down makes it more difficult for the body to clear mucus form the respiratory tract, negatively affecting breathing.
Sleeping at an angle is one of the best ways to guarantee a more restful night’s sleep while battling the cold or flu. The elevated position can decrease inflammation of the mucosa that affects your nasal passage and ability to breathe1.
The angle helps open up your nasal area and volume verses laying where down the blood vessels in the mucosa of your nose change, thus altering blood flow.
Being upright improves your ability to breathe by allowing congestion to drain out of your head, reducing sinus pressure2.
Lying down in certain positions can cause compression of the neck veins.
Better Rest Starts Here
To battle chest congestion when sick, postural drainage is a technique that involves altering your body’s position to help promote drainage from your lungs.
A forward-facing position targets the upper lobes by leaning a child forward at a 30-degree angle, helping to drain excess mucus4.
Postural drainage utilizes gravity to help clear the lungs.
This type of airway clearance therapy, is often used for chronic conditions involving lung congestion, such as COPD and cystic fibrosis3.
references
Naclerio, R. M., Bachert, C., & Baraniuk, J. N. (2010). Pathophysiology of nasal congestion. International Journal of General Medicine, 3, 47–57.
Roithmann, R., Demeneghi, P., Faggiano, R., & Cury, A. (2005). Effects of posture change on nasal patency. Brazilian Journal of Otorhinolaryngology, 71(4), 478–484. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1808-8694(15)31203-9
Belli, S., Prince, I., Savio, G., Paracchini, E., Cattaneo, D., Bianchi, M., Masocco, F., Bellanti, M. T., & Balbi, B. (2021). Airway clearance techniques: The right choice for the right patient. Frontiers in Medicine, 8, 544826. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmed.2021.544826
Performing postural drainage for people with copd. (n.d.). Verywell Health. Retrieved April 14, 2022, from https://www.verywellhealth.com/postural-drainage-4020317