by Dr. Joseph Mercola, Mercola:
STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- According to recent research, gargling and rinsing your nasal passages with saline can ease the respiratory symptoms of COVID-19 and reduce your risk of hospitalization
- The hospitalization rate among those gargling and irrigating their sinuses four times a day for 14 days, using 2.13 grams of salt dissolved in 8 ounces of warm water, was 18.5%. Those who used 6 grams of salt had a hospitalization rate of 21.4%. The untreated reference population had a hospitalization rate of 58.8%
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- Nasal irrigation and gargling with hypertonic saline has also been shown to reduce the duration of the common cold by 1.9 days and reduce transmission within the household by 35% when done within 48 hours of symptom onset
- Irrigating your sinuses with povidone-iodine has also been shown to reduce COVID hospitalization rates
- Nebulizing hydrogen peroxide may be the most effective strategy of all. In most respiratory infection cases, improvement is seen within a few hours. Some of your immune cells produce hydrogen peroxide to destroy pathogens. By killing the infected cell, viral reproduction is stopped. Hydrogen peroxide therapy aids your immune cells to perform their natural function more effectively
According to research presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) in early November 2023, gargling and rinsing your nasal passages with a simple saline solution can ease the respiratory symptoms of COVID-19 and reduce your risk of hospitalization.
The results have not yet been published in a peer-reviewed medical journal. As reported in an ACAAI press release,1 both high- and low-dose saline regimens, consisting of gargling and nasal rinsing four times a day for 14 days, were associated with significantly lower hospitalization rates for COVID-19 infections compared to the reference population.
Simple Technique to Lower Your Hospitalization Risk
Between 2020 and 2022, 55 individuals between the ages of 18 and 65 who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection were randomly assigned to use either a high- or low-dose saline solution. Outcomes were compared to a reference group of 9,398 patients who also had COVID but didn’t gargle or rinse their nasal passages. All had similar rates of vaccination, including controls.
The low-dose group used 2.13 grams of salt dissolved in 8 ounces of warm water, while the high-dose group used 6 grams of salt. They were instructed to gargle and rinse their nasal passages with the solution four times a day for 14 days.
The primary outcomes included frequency and duration of symptoms associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Secondary outcomes included hospital or ICU admission, mechanical ventilatory support and death.
Primary and secondary outcomes were very similar between the two treatment groups, but significantly lower than the control group. The hospitalization rate among those using the low-dose saline regimen was 18.5%. In the high-dose group, it was 21.4%. The reference population, meanwhile, had a hospitalization rate of 58.8%. No significant differences were noted in the other outcomes. Co-author Dr. Jimmy Espinoza commented on the results:
“We found that both saline regimens appear to be associated with lower hospitalization rates compared to controls in SARS-CoV-2 infections2 … It’s a very simple intervention that is universally available, cheap and easy to use. I think it can make a difference, especially when it comes to comfort.”3
Nasal Irrigation and Gargling Speeds Recovery From Common Cold
Studies have shown similar benefits for other respiratory ailments as well. For example, nasal irrigation and gargling with hypertonic saline has been shown to reduce the duration of the common cold by 1.9 days and reduce transmission within the household by 35% when done within 48 hours of symptom onset.4
Gargling and flushing your sinuses helps prevent respiratory infections and speeds recovery by killing and flushing out viruses, thereby lowering your viral load.
In most respiratory infections, including COVID-19, the viral load is greatest in the sinuses and nasal cavity. Regularly rinsing your sinuses therefore makes sense since it would help clear out the pathogen and prevent it from gaining a strong foothold and migrating into your lungs.
