What to Look For in a Humidifier – An Update

Posted on09. Sep, 2011 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

.This is an update from an article that I posted about a year ago, What to Look For in a Humidifier: the Good, the Bad, the Ugly. As we enter the cold and flu season, as the weather cools down and we turn up the heat at home, at school, and at work, nasal drying [...]

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Poll Results: What is Your Method for Nasal Saline Rinses?

Posted on31. Mar, 2011 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

Well, the poll results are in. I usually  try to take a poll down once a couple hundred results are recorded. This poll has reached over 290 results, and the results were not what I had expected: What Methods Do We Use for Nasal Saline Rinses? 51% still use the Neti pot, as you can [...]

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Top 15 Posts So Far

Posted on24. Mar, 2011 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

This is boogordoctor.com’s first birthday, so I thought it might be a good time to review what you thought were the best articles here. I recently thanked y’all for making my first ever blogging experience a good one. I have met many friends through this blog, and according to emails and comments, have helped some [...]

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Eliminate Your Smoke Exposure

Posted on14. Oct, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

Smoking … Bad … We’ve heard about the harm from tobacco smoke these days – the number of cancers related to smoking or chewing tobacco, the cost of respiratory illness such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD, or emphysema).  We hear about the addictive properties of tobacco smoke, and we see the advertisements [...]

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Better Living Through LESS Chemistry: 8 Natural Alternatives to Toxic Cleaners

Posted on26. Aug, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

Volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) are ubiquitous – they are all around us, and in us. In addition to allergies, rhinitis, asthma, alterations in our immune systems, and neuro-toxicity, these toxins have been linked to cancer, diabetes, and birth defects. We have recently reviewed how to reduce them in our water and our food. Here are some small steps that will make a BIG difference in your life.

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Better Living Through LESS Chemistry

Posted on05. Aug, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

Most of us grew up (have I grown up yet?) in the age of “better living through chemistry.” That was the promise. Unfortunately, along with the “better living,” chemistry also brought along toxins. This is the 1st in a 4-part series on reducing the chemicals in your life – and in your children’s lives.

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Use Plants to Purify and Detoxify Your Air

Posted on15. Jul, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

Interesting story: We have NASA and an asthmatic in India to thank for finding the right plants to detoxify our air for us. That’s right, NASA – the space people, and a business man with severe asthma. And plants also provide us with oxygen as an added benefit. Here’s the story …

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The 8 Basic Principles to Control Your Child’s Sinusitis

Posted on10. Jun, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

For most of my sinusitis patients, the doctors have tried everything to treat their sinus troubles. Their parents feel like their kids are an ongoing experiment for those docs. Chronic sinusitis is a challenge. Everyone is frustrated: the child, the parents, the docs. There is no easy answer. No quick cure. Even so, you CAN make things better with a few simple rules. Here are the 8 basic tips that you can follow to improve the quality of life for YOUR little boogor-head.

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The “Ciliopathies”

Posted on20. May, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

When those little hair-like cilia don’t work normally, bad things happen. The medical terms are “dysmotile cilia syndrome”, “primary ciliary dyskinesia”, and acquired or “secondary ciliary dyskinesia.” All contribute to ear infections (otitis, mastoiditis), sinus infections (rhinosinusitis), and other respiratory infections. Whether “primary” or acquired, here are some tips that might help.

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Saline Sinus Rinses: What Good Are They? 4/4

Posted on13. May, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

If you insist on making your own saline solution …

Before I switched over to the store-bought, Nasopure saline rinse system, this is the recipe I used for years:

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Saline Sinus Rinses: What Good Are They? 3/4

Posted on06. May, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

It’s one thing to have someone suggest that you should do saline sinus rinses. They usually won’t tell you how to do them, like it’s something too indelicate to discuss. Well, let’s discuss it now …

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Saline Sinus Rinses: What Good Are They? 2/4

Posted on29. Apr, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

Medical Evidence to Support Sinus Irrigations: A study from the University of Michigan (well-designed, and executed as a randomized, controlled trial of over 100 people with chronic rhinosinusitis) found that symptom severity and symptom frequency were significantly reduced in those who used sinus rinses on a daily basis compared to those who did not. Similar [...]

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What to Look for in a Humidifier: the Good, the Bad, the Ugly

Posted on31. Mar, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

A dry nose leads to 2 things: nose bleeds, and sinusitis. In order to avoid nose bleeds and sinusitis, the lining of your nose needs to stay moist. Keep those cilia happy! That’s where your humidifier comes in. There are many choices, but only 1 great choice…

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STOP BREATHING: Your Air Is Killing You (and what to do about it)

Posted on26. Mar, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

We Americans spend nearly 90% of our time indoors. We take for granted that our indoor air quality is safe. Certainly, our air quality indoors is better than that polluted stuff outside. Isn’t it? Wrong. The EPA says that air pollution indoors may be 100 times higher than outdoors. So unless you can stop breathing, here are 8 simple tips to keep your air from killing you.

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8 Things You Can Do To Reduce Your Child’s Nose Bleeds

Posted on18. Mar, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

We know that picking is the #1 cause of nose bleeds in children.
Short of sewing mittens on their hands so they can”t pick their noses, here are the things that you CAN do …

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Anatomy of Nose Bleeds in Children

Posted on04. Mar, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

I have been seeing my recurrent and chronic nose-bleeders in clinic again. It goes with the season. Now that we are in the cold-weather, heat-is-on-air-is-dry season, you are bringing your children with nose bleeds to see me in clinic again. So I thought now would be a good time to review nasal bleeds (epistaxis) in children.

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Allergic Rhinitis CAN Be Controlled – Here’s How

Posted on04. Mar, 2010 by Russell A. Faust, PhD, MD.

Allergic rhinitis – usually simply called “allergies” – is a chronic illness resulting in stuffy, runny nose. Itchy, burning eyes and general low energy are often associated. It is estimated that allergic rhinitis affects nearly 50 Million Americans. Over half of those with sinus disease have a history of allergic rhinitis, and it is estimated that close to 95% of those with asthma have rhinitis. Your child may have both too. How to ‘freeze’ those allergens?

The good news – allergies CAN be controlled.

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