When you are congested, saline nasal spray clears out the mucus and crusts in your nasal passages that are causing you to feel stuffy.
Hypertonic saline nasal drops can reduce children’s colds within two days, while reducing the chances of other family members getting sick, UK researchers say. Simple drops can be made using water and salt, according to a recent study by the University of Edinburgh.
“Children suffer between 10 and 12 upper respiratory infections – what we call colds – a year, which has a huge impact on them and their families,” explained University of Edinburgh professor Steve Cunningham. “There are medications to improve symptoms, such as paracetamol and ibuprofen, but there are no treatments that can make a cold get better faster.” For the study, researchers taught parents to prepare and apply saline solution into their children’s noses. Three drops were administered into each nostril at least four times a day until all 150 young children got better.
The remaining 151 children received usual cold treatment, which included cough and cold-reducing medications and pain relievers. “We found that children who used saltwater nose drops had cold symptoms for an average of six days, while those who received usual care had symptoms for eight days,” Cunningham said. “Children who received saltwater nose drops also needed less medication during their illness.”
The research, which will be presented at the European Respiratory Society Congress in Austria, found that less than 50 per cent of those who used saline drops reported that a family member had caught their child’s cold, compared with the remaining 61 per cent. At least 82 per cent of parents said saline drops were effective in treating their children and a whopping 81 per cent said they would use the drops in the future too.
How does salt water help reduce cold symptoms?
The study’s lead researcher, consultant virologist Sandeep Ramalingam, noted that people in South Asia often use saltwater solutions to treat colds.
According to experts, saline nasal spray can help hydrate dry nasal passages by moistening them. When you’re congested, saline nasal spray clears out mucus and crusts from your nasal passages that make you feel stuffy. Using a saline nasal spray or irrigation also helps clear out your nasal passages, removing pollen and other things that cause allergies. It also protects you from some types of infections.
Doctors say cells lining the respiratory tract use chloride from salt droplets to produce hypochlorous acid and defend themselves against viruses. “By giving extra chloride to the cells lining the respiratory tract, you help them produce more hypochlorous acid, which helps suppress viral replication, reducing the duration of viral infection and therefore the duration of symptoms,” Cunningham said.
How to use saline spray effectively?
Making sure you use saline nasal spray correctly can make it more effective:
- Gently blow your nose to help remove mucus and debris, which will help the saline nasal spray work better.
- Wash your hands
- Tilt your head slightly and keep your mouth closed.
- Block one nostril by gently pressing the side of your nose.
- Place the tip of the bottle in one nostril and point it towards the back of the nose.
- Repeat with the other nostril.
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