Do you Neti?
As we enter cold and flu season there are a few things we can do to boost our immunity. We recommend taking a good quality Vitamin D supplement. Dr. Brian recommends Bio-D-Mulsion Forte which is easy to take and has 100% bioavailability. We have Bio-D-Mulsion Forte for purchase in our office. In addition to Vitamin D a healthy diet rich in vegetables and fruits, exercising most days of the week and sufficient rest helps to keep us healthy. Of course chiropractic adjustments assure our spine is in good alignment and our nervous system is working optimally, which helps our immunity too.
Even while taking all these precautions we may still get colds or flu. There are natural ways to help us lessen the severity of these conditions. One good way is to do nasal irrigation at the onset of symptoms. This is a gentle way of washing the sinus cavity of congestion. The easiest way to do this is to use a Netipot. A netipot entails flushing out your nasal cavity with a saline solution. Benefits include improving or alleviating allergy symptoms, nasal/sinus congestion, runny nose, sinusitis/rhinitis infections, sinus headaches and reducing the frequency and durations of a cold or flu.
A study of 211 patients from the University of California Nasal Dysfunction Clinic who had sinonasal disease (including allergic rhinitis, aging rhinitis, atrophic rhinitis, and postnasal drip) and 20 disease-free control subjects were enrolled. Patients irrigated their nasal cavities using saline solution twice daily for 3 to 6 weeks. Patients rated nasal disease-specific symptoms and completed a self-administered quality of well-being questionnaire before intervention and at follow-up. RESULTS: Patients who used nasal irrigation for the treatment of sinonasal disease experienced statistically significant improvements in 23 of the 30 nasal symptoms queried. Improvement was also measured in the global assessment of health status using the Quality of Well-Being scale. CONCLUSIONS: Nasal irrigation is effective in improving symptoms and the health status of patients with sinonasal disease.
Even while taking all these precautions we may still get colds or flu. There are natural ways to help us lessen the severity of these conditions. One good way is to do nasal irrigation at the onset of symptoms. This is a gentle way of washing the sinus cavity of congestion. The easiest way to do this is to use a Netipot. A netipot entails flushing out your nasal cavity with a saline solution. Benefits include improving or alleviating allergy symptoms, nasal/sinus congestion, runny nose, sinusitis/rhinitis infections, sinus headaches and reducing the frequency and durations of a cold or flu.
A study of 211 patients from the University of California Nasal Dysfunction Clinic who had sinonasal disease (including allergic rhinitis, aging rhinitis, atrophic rhinitis, and postnasal drip) and 20 disease-free control subjects were enrolled. Patients irrigated their nasal cavities using saline solution twice daily for 3 to 6 weeks. Patients rated nasal disease-specific symptoms and completed a self-administered quality of well-being questionnaire before intervention and at follow-up. RESULTS: Patients who used nasal irrigation for the treatment of sinonasal disease experienced statistically significant improvements in 23 of the 30 nasal symptoms queried. Improvement was also measured in the global assessment of health status using the Quality of Well-Being scale. CONCLUSIONS: Nasal irrigation is effective in improving symptoms and the health status of patients with sinonasal disease.
There are plenty of videos on Youtube to instruct you on how to use a netipot. It is important to clean your netipot before and after each use. Do not use tap water, it could have bacteria in it that shouldn’t be introduced to delicate sinus tissue. To be safe use only warm distilled or tap water that has been brought to a boil then cooled down. Be sure water is tepid, not too hot or cold. There are companies who make the salt powder in convenient one dose packets, but you can make your own too. You will need 1/2 tsp to 1 cup of water and 1/4 tsp baking soda is optional. Mix well before using. Nasal irrigation is easy and even though the first time may feel weird it is painless and helps thin and clear mucus and infection from the sinuses and nasal passages making you feel better sooner. It would not be a bad practice to do nasal irrigation even when feeling well as a prevention to keep viruses and bacteria flushed out before they have a chance to cause illnesses.
