Rinse it Out!!
Nasal Saline Rinses to Cure Sinusitis
Do you have a stuffy nose? Sinusitis? There is an easy solution (get it? solution :))
Here are a couple of videos:
The first video is of a couple young kids using the Nasopure squeeze bottle to perform nasal saline rinses. Awesome! [1st VIDEO below].
The second video is from Carol, who sends this great video of her son performing nasal saline rinses [2nd VIDEO below].
Be sure to watch the YouTube video of this, and wait for the HUGE loogie that he gets out of the sinuses.
Now that’s relief!
Warning: grossout potential!
Most readers of my articles know that I struggle with allergic rhinitis and chronic sinusitis. At least I did until I began my naturopathic journey down the road to cure. Here is a brief outline of some of my remedies.
Most of my remedies are summarized here in my article, 5-Step Program to Eliminate Chronic Sinusitis.
Here is an outline to that approach, some of my articles on these topics, and some links to the products that I use:
- nasal saline rinses
this may include additives for chronic sinusitis (thought to be caused by bacterial biofilm)
- honey / Manuka honey
- baby shampoo
- Xylitol - probiotics (for kids) / probiotics (for adults)
- humidification (What to Look for in Humidifiers)
- personal hydration
- humidification of air - healthy immune system (Probiotics: Do They Work?)
- Xylitol
- in diet
- in nasal rinse - De-Tox
- eliminate toxic cleaners in the home
- organic, natural, high-fiber diet
- cleaning the air in my home
People often ask me whether I use the power irrigation system. I do not personally use a powered irrigation system.
I love my Nasopure system.
Here are some children (yes, children) using the Nasopure system to do nasal saline rinses.
By themselves. Cute:
[1st VIDEO: kids doing nasal saline rinses using Nasopure system]
Be sure to click on over to http://www.Nasopure.com to watch some more GREAT videos!
Note that I consider Dr. Hana (Solomon) to be a good friend, and a great Pediatrician.
This is the system that I use myself, and the one that I use for my own children, and recommend for patients. I think that it’s easy, and WAY more comfortable to use than a Neti pot! (no weird neck angles).
But, I hear from some parents that it is easier for their children to use the powered systems than the manually-controlled squeeze bottles.
Whatever works.
The most important thing is to DO IT.
The powered systems are gentler than you might think, and if one of these systems helps cure your little boogorhead’s sinusitis, they are worth the small investment! That is why I provide links to two powered systems on the boogordoctor Amazon Store:
- the SinuPulse Nasal Sinus Irrigation System
- the Grossan Hydro Pulse Nasal and Sinus Irrigation System
I consider Dr. Grossan to be a friend, and one of the smartest Rhinologists. You may recall my recent article, Guided Imagery and Sinusitis?, where I reviewed his book, Free Yourself From Sinus and Allergy Problems Permanently. It is a great book, and one of my top go-to resources. (Worth a read if you or your kids struggle with chronic sinusitis or allergies).
So, here is a video of a little boy using a powered system, pretty successfully (provided by Carol, a reader):
[2nd VIDEO]
[The little boy in this video is using a powered system that you can also find on Amazon. But it is 50% more expensive (ouch) than the SinuPulse or Grossan Hydro Pulse systems, and the Amazon ratings for these two systems are better; so the SinuPulse and Grossan Hydro Pulse systems are the ones I recommend to patients who want a powered system.]
What about you?
Do use a Neti put?
A Nasopure squeeze-bottle?
The garden hose?
A powered irrigation system?
And if you use a powered system, which one? Do you recommend it?
I think that the first video shows us that even pretty young kids (4 years) can manually deal with nasal saline rinses, given encouragement and support.
Let us know in a comment what YOU think so we can all learn from your experience.
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Transparency: links to products on the boogordoctor’s Amazon Store are “affiliate links”, and help support this site, thanks :))
Image Credit: U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate 2nd Class Charles A. Edwards Jr. In public domain
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:US_Navy_031018-N-8295E-266_Damage_Controlmen_spray_fire_hose’s_off_the_hanger_deck_during_a_damage_control_demonstration_held_for_embarked_guests_aboard_USS_Ronald_Reagan_(CVN_76).jpg
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Hi, I’m Russell Faust, author of this medical education blog.
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Oooo, a star is born!
Three different ENT surgeries later, my son’s health is a million times better especially since we discovered, and our ingenious doctor fixed, the congenital anomaly that was causing his illnesses. We will still do sinus rinses this winter. I keep reminding my son that we do not want another sinus surgery!
You ENTs are pretty special guys and gals,
Hi, Dr. Faust! A little over a year ago, I searched the internet for the zillionth time, desperately trying to find some help for my then-8 YO son who had chronic sinusitis and seemed to be on antibiotics most of the year , despite previous adenoidectomy & FESS.
Every time he caught a cold, my blood pressure skyrocketed as I knew what lay ahead.
UGH. Then, I stumbled across your website and read your strong recommendations on saline rinses. I e-mailed and spoke with Dr. Hanna, learned to do them on myself and taught my son. He quickly adjusted to them (rinses while showering) and one year later, MIRACULOUSLY, has not had ONE SINUS INFECTION . Quite a few colds, but they did NOT, I repeat, did NOT turn into sinus infections. The colds actually…went away! Who knew?! Nothing else changed regarding his health, so I’m a believer! THANK YOU ! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! You are providing an invaluable service to the lay public (and probably quite a few health professionals) and have personally aided in lowering my BP ! :)
I love this site, please keep up the great work (and humor) !
Hi Angela,
Thank you so much for your kind comments.
So glad to hear about your son’s success!
That sounds like my own experience with saline nasal rinses. In my own case, that level of success also required adding the occasional Manuka honey to the rinses, and adding probiotics to my daily regimen.
I appreciate your readership, and thank you for the support and encouragement.
Please spread the word :))
RF
SinuPulse is the gold standard for nasal irrigation and developed by the same company that first developed the HydroPulse with Dr. Grossan. I had two Grossan units both worked well but failed prematurely after about a year. The SinuPulse was recommended to me by Dr Davidson at UCSD as a step up to the HydroPulse since it has a spray feature that can be used for medications and holistic rinses where you don’t just want it going in and out of your nostrils. The regular cleansing rinse works great as well and it has a larger water tank so you can irrigate longer too. The mechanical irrigator is so much better than the manual methods like squeeze bottles and neti pots but they are pricier.
Hi Julie,
Thanks for this feedback. This is the sort of experience that we all want to hear about!
RF
Julie, I had read that the Grossan machine fails early. That influenced my purchase. I really did not have
room for the Sinupulse machine on the counter and liked the fact that the Sanvic had a covered compartment for the applicators.
Carol
Carol, Julie,
It is information like THIS that provides value here: been-there-done-that experiences that we can all benefit from.
Thank you both!
boogs
Howdy, my son has his first sinusitis in over a year. Ugh!!! We are rinsing twice a day but after the rinse my poor son has a twenty minute plus coughing fit, a tickle cough made worse by rinsing. Horrible, uncontrollable fit. How does one deal with such an over sensitive cough response? Poor tyke coughs until he chokes and he has been sick for two weeks.
Thanks, carol
Hi Carol,
One alternative that you might consider is to use the saline nasal spray that contains Xylitol. Xylitol is a naturally-occurring sugar that bacteria cannot metabolize. In addition, as Xylitol is incorporated into the cell-surface proteoglycans (surface receptor molecules) of the nasal lining, it prevents bacteria from adhering to the lining of the nose and sinuses. All good effects. The nasal spray that I use, and that our kids use, is from Xlear.com – also sold here on this site through the boogordoctor Amazon Store. Amazon has the best price that I have found. If you find a better price, please let us all know!
It comes in glass bottle – not great for kids – and small plastic squeeze-bottle – great for kids. The plastic squeeze bottle is also much less expensive. I have found the glass-bottled Xlear nasal spray at various local stores, but ourageously priced! So I buy ours on Amazon.
RF
Thanks for the input. I have some Xclear in the house. Last time I tried it, he actually did not like the taste. What is your opinion of steroid sprays like Nasonex? We use that when he starts to show signs of sinusitis along with nose washes.
Antibiotic finished, cough coming back. I think the only solution is to fly to a hot location and swim in the ocean, hoping the salt water cures all.
As always thanks for your dedication to us suffers and our families.
Hi Carol,
Oh, how odd. I was able to get my little guy to use the Xlear nasal spray only after I sprayed it on his tongue and he realized that it tasted sweet, not “like medicine.”
You might consider buying either the NetiXlear saline packets (you can buy them through the boogordoctor’s Amazon Store), or simply buy a pound bag of Xylitol and add some to your saline for nasal rinses. This is what I do now. (This way, I support Nasopure.com by buying their saline packets, and also support Xlear.com, by buying their pound bags of Xylitol – both through the boogordoctor Amazon Store.) By the way, for anybody reading these comments, if you ever find any of those products at a better price (including shipping), PLEASE let us know in a comment!
I know: this all assumes that you can actually DO saline nasal rinses for your little guy. That’s a tall order, I know. I have been variably successful (and variously failed) over time with our three monkeys. Oh well. Do watch the videos on Nasopure.com, awesome!
Nasal steroid sprays? They CAN help significantly reduce inflammation. They CAN be helpful. But if you don’t see any benefit, don’t blindly keep going with steroids, even topical steroids like the nasal sprays. Clinical trials have shown that they ARE absorbed into the bloodstream, and they DO have an effect over time. Consider Curcumin as a powerful anti-inflammatory, as well as Quercetin / Bromolein combination. I think that the Orthomolecular brand offers an Antihis-D formulation for children (again, check the boogordoctor Amazon Store).
Antibiotics? Yuk, too bad. Hope he gets beyond that.
For maintenance of healthy respiratory system: Probiotics. Xylitol. Curcumin / Quercetin-Bromolein for strong anti-inflammatory benefits. Manuka honey in saline rinses to fight acute or chronic infections. Reduce every trigger for his reactive airway that you can possibly think of. Vigilance will pay off, have faith!
Thanks for sharing, and keep us posted,
RF
Thanks for all the info. I believe that my son’s airway problems are a result of his laryngeal cleft, now repaired. It did some damage over 5.5 years and he is still healing. He has been checked up and down and scoped by every specialty one would care to think of. I’ll try the quercetin. It is definitely the sinus inflammation that is the concern right now.
Carol
Carol,
Laryngeal cleft is a rare, but big deal. The inflammation resulting from chronic aspiration does often take a long time to resolve, even after perfect repair. Best success to you.
RF