In the article I will try to share my own experiences with the Breathe Right Nasal Strips, and combine it with what I can find on scientific evidence and support. In the 2025 Tour de France we see the nose strips again, with Visma Lease a Bike even wearing pink ones in stage 10 on 14-07-2025.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Key features Breathe Right Nasal Strips
Breathe Right has published a “how it works” page that summarizes how the nasal strips should be used and what it can do in a normal situation:
Breathe Right Nasal Strips are flexible spring-like bands that gently lift & open your nose/nostrils for improved nasal airflow helping you breathe better.
Breathe Right instantly relieves nasal congestion that can arise from colds, allergies & a deviated septum and is clinically shown to help reduce snoring for a better night’s sleep.
The Breathe Right Nasal Strips are a drug free, non prescription device that works mechanically from the outside to gently open the nose/nostrils. This reduces nasal airflow resistance and makes breathing easier. Breathe Right can be used anytime you want to breathe easier through your nose while exercising, sleeping, or anytime throughout the day or night. It’s gentle on skin for both adults and kids.
In the article “Nasal Strips, Fad Science or Performance Enhancer?” by Dr Will O’Connor there is a very good visual description of how the nasal strips are designed and how these work mechanically. Personally I have used these years ago (I think in the timeframe when Michelle Bartoli and Frank Vandenbroucke were competing on La Redoute).
Yes you can experience that the your nostrils are forced open, like a spring, but not in an uncomfortable way. You just need to make sure that you will apply sun-blocker after the application of the Breathe Right Nasal Strips, it simply will not stick on an oily skin.
Nose Strips back in the 2025 Tour de France
The most prominent presence of the Breathe Right Nasal Strips are the pink nose strips that team Visma Lease a Bike were using in stage 10 of Le Tour de France 2025. The pink versions were a tribute to the Giro d’Italia 2025 win of Simon Yates, where the team also used the pink nasal strips during the winning streak on Col de la Finestre.
But also Remco Evenepoel has been riding with nasal strips as you can read in the article: “Waarom Remco Evenepoel plots met een neuspleister koerst?“. It also frames that some athletes already have a more than good airflow by physical blue print, so it could be a personal and marginal gain.
Scientific proof of Breathe Right Nasal Strips
There are more professional cyclists using the nasal strips (current- and past generations). So let’s find out if there is any scientific proof in this world of marginal gains where competition is on an extremely high level.
- Nasal Strips, Fad Science or Performance Enhancer? – Dr Will OConnor
- Does the external nasal dilator strip help in sports activity? A systematic review and meta-analysis – PubMed
- Study Shows Athletes Get No Kick From Nasal Strips – University at Buffalo
- Evaluation of the effectiveness of the external nasal dilator strip in adolescent athletes: A randomized trial – ScienceDirect
- Nasal Strips for Runners: Gimmick or Game-Changer? | The Running Week
- Does the external nasal dilator strip help in sports activity? A systematic review and meta-analysis – PubMed
- The role of an internal nasal dilator in athletes – PMC
- Does the external nasal dilator strip help in sports activity? A systematic review and meta-analysis | Request PDF
I am not a scientist, but I’ll trust the multiple studies conducted in more than one sport. It is tough to generalize and quantify the impact on top athletes. I simply enjoyed reading through the research and find out if views and evidence has changed since Michelle Bartoli and Frank Vandenbroucke.
Dr. Will O’Connor summarized the conclusion best in a simple way:
Do they work?
Science says no.
Concluding thoughts and wrap-up
The price point of a box with 30 Breathe Right Nasal Strips (in size medium) is € 16,00 which is a bit less than € 0,55 per nasal strip. This acceptable for these special events where you might need a mental gain. Or in this rare occasions when your nose is slightly blocked for a granfondo.
- Did you ever use Breath eRight Nasal Strips? What were your own experiences?
- Did you even tried another brand of Nasal Strips? If so drop me a comment which ones.
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