This is a shortened article of Dr. Mercola, follow this link for the full article – and Then I Deon the owner of Bound-Oxygen then explains what makes our products special, so I do not claim to be objective, as I am a true believer and user of the Bound-Oxygen Product range. This is my disclaimer before we start – and I thank Dr. Mercola for this very informative article on how nasal irrigation can help COVID-19/Flu/Colds.

Dr. Mercola:

STORY AT-A-GLANCE

• Flushing your sinuses may be an effective way to inhibit the progression of a virus such as SARS-CoV-2 by lowering the viral load in your sinuses
• Research has demonstrated that nasal irrigation reduces the symptoms and duration of viral illnesses such as the seasonal flu and common cold
• 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% by reducing viral shedding when done within 48 hours of symptom onset
• You may also be able to reduce the risk of SARS-CoV-2 migrating into your lungs by gargling a saline solution or using a povidone-iodine solution such as Betadine Sore Throat Gargle
• Nebulizing hydrogen peroxide or colloidal silver may be even more effective. A recent review found 0.5% hydrogen peroxide effectively inactivated a range of human coronaviruses, including those responsible for SARS and MERS, within one minute of exposure

By now, you probably understand the importance of hand-washing to prevent the spread of infectious illness. But did you know flushing your sinuses might be an even better way to inhibit the progression of a viral illness such as COVID-19? In an April 20, 2020, article,¹ MSN’s Best Life features the recommendations of Dr. Amy Baxter, a pediatric emergency medicine physician in Atlanta, Georgia.

Nasal irrigation, she says, is a rarely discussed strategy that can help reduce the progression of illness in those who have tested positive for COVID-19 infection. In an April 2, 2020, response² to a BMJ paper about the lack of personal protection equipment on COVID-19 frontlines, professor Robert Matthews also brought up the importance and potential usefulness of oropharyngeal washing to protect health care workers from infection. As reported by MSN Best Life:³

“Nasal irrigation, or a nasal wash, has long been considered an effective way to remove viruses or bacteria from sinus cavities. Baxter has multiple reasons for believing that this approach can be effective in preventing the spread of coronavirus from worsening in a sick patient.”

Why Nasal Irrigation?

As noted by Baxter, researchers have found that the viral load of SARS-CoV-2 tends to be heaviest 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.

The age and gender discrepancies observed in COVID-19 also supports nasal irrigation. Children are at virtually no risk from COVID-19, while death rates among the elderly are at their highest. More men than women also die from the infection.

“Children don’t develop full sinuses until teens; males have larger cavities than women, and the cavities are largest [in those] over 70 years,” Baxter notes.

Research has previously demonstrated that nasal irrigation reduces the symptoms and duration of other viral illnesses such as the seasonal flu and common cold.

In one randomized controlled trial,⁴ nasal irrigation and gargling with hypertonic saline were found to reduce the duration of the common cold by 1.9 days and reduce transmission within the household by 35% by reducing viral shedding when done within 48 hours of symptom onset.

While it has not yet been studied as a preventive method for COVID-19 specifically, there’s reason to suspect nasal irrigation might be helpful.

Baxter points out that COVID-19 death rates in Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand, Vietnam and Laos have been surprisingly low, and nasal irrigation is common practice in those areas. According to Baxter, some 80% of the Southeast Asian population do it.

How to Irrigate Your Sinuses

Baxter suggests irrigating your sinuses any time you’ve been exposed to an infected individual or test positive for COVID-19. She recommends flushing your sinuses in the morning using a mixture of boiled lukewarm water (8 ounces) and povidone-iodine (half a teaspoon).

Povidone-iodine has been shown to effectively kill not only Klebsiella pneumoniae and Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria, but to also rapidly inactivate SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, H1N1 influenza virus A and rotavirus after 15 seconds of exposure.⁵

The mixture used in this study — 7% povidone-iodine diluted 1-to-30, which equates to a total concentration of 0.23% povidone-iodine — inactivated over 99% of the coronaviruses causing SARS and MERS.

Either a neti pot or NeilMed sinus rinse bottle can be used. The water pressure you get from a sinus rinse bottle can provide a more effective flush. If higher pressure is uncomfortable, a neti pot, which relies on gravity, may be a more comfortable choice. In the evening, Baxter recommends flushing your sinuses again with a mixture of:

• 8 ounces of boiled lukewarm water
• 0.5 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon table salt

Deon Marais (Owner) Comments:

Bound Oxygen has a Nasal Spray “BO2 Sinus & Hayfever Spray” it is a 0.065% Food Grade Hydrogen Peroxide product, it is a very mild H2O2, and we have a vegetable stabiliser, so no toxins. When you spray this into your sinuses it kills bacteria, viruses and also neutralise any toxins (hay-fever symptoms) and so is the ideal way to do as an alternative to a Nasal Irrigation.
As our Nasal Spray is so mild, and so well stabilised, there is only a mild burning sensation, that said, if there is no bacteria/viruses/toxins in the sinuses then it will feel as though you just squirted water into the sinuses, and the more bacteria/viruses/toxins it comes in contact with, the more it will burn.
So when you spray the sinuses, and it burns, you spray more often, and when it feels like “water” you spray less often. I spray twice a day, or if I get back into my car and I was in public places – where germs are more prevalent.

Dr. Mercola:

Nebulized Hydrogen Peroxide — Another Prevention Strategy

While gargling and nasal irrigation may certainly be useful, I believe nebulizing hydrogen peroxide or colloidal silver may be even more effective. Dr. Thomas Levy¹⁰ has issued guidance¹¹ on how to use nebulized hydrogen peroxide for the prevention and treatment of viral respiratory infections, including COVID-19.

To inactivate viruses with hydrogen peroxide, all you need is a face mask that covers your mouth and nose and a nebulizer that emits a fine mist with properly diluted food grade hydrogen peroxide.

The microscopic mist, similar to smoke or vapor, can be comfortably inhaled deep into your nostrils, sinuses and lungs. Hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) consists of a water molecule (H₂O) with an extra oxygen atom, and it is the additional oxygen atom that allows it to inactivate viral pathogens.

Coronaviruses are held together by a lipid (fat) envelope. Soap, being amphipathic¹² — meaning it can dissolve most molecules — dissolves this fat membrane, causing the virus to fall apart and become harmless.

Hydrogen peroxide works in a similar way. You can find more details about the mechanism of action in my previous article, “Could Hydrogen Peroxide Treat Coronavirus?”

Some of your immune cells actually produce hydrogen peroxide to destroy pathogens. By killing the infected cell, viral reproduction is stopped. So, hydrogen peroxide therapy is in essence only aiding your immune cells to perform their natural function more effectively.

Hydrogen peroxide is also a key redox signaling agent that creates oxidative eustress.¹³ Contrary to oxidative stress or oxidative distress, oxidative eustress denotes an oxidative challenge that has positive or beneficial effects and is essential in redox signaling.

Many studies have looked into the use of hydrogen peroxide against different pathogens. One of the most relevant is a review¹⁴ of 22 studies, published in March 2020 in the Journal of Hospital Infection. They found 0.5% hydrogen peroxide effectively inactivated a range of human coronaviruses, including those responsible for SARS and MERS, within one minute of exposure.

If you’re already presenting with a runny nose or sore throat, Levy recommends using the nebulizer for 10 to 15 minutes four times a day until your symptoms are relieved. You can also use nebulized hydrogen peroxide for prevention and maintenance, which may be advisable during flu season, or while the COVID-19 pandemic is in full swing. According to Levy:¹⁵

“As it is a completely non-toxic therapy, nebulization can be administered as often as desired. If done on a daily basis at least once, a very positive impact on bowel and gut function will often be realized as killing the chronic pathogen colonization present in most noses and throats stops the 24/7 swallowing of these pathogens and their associated toxins.

If daily prevention is not a practical option, the effectiveness of this treatment is optimized when somebody sneezes in your face or you finally get off of the plane after a trans-Atlantic flight. Don’t wait for initial symptoms. Just nebulize at your first opportunity.”

Deon Marais (Owner) Comments:

I Nebulise with the Sinus Product a 0.065% Hydrogen Peroxide if I nebulize for 30 minutes or longer and I nebulize with our 1% Sore Throat product when I nebulize for 5 – 10 minutes.
I think nebulizing Hydrogen Peroxide is the future of being safe, so if you do not have a nebulizer you should really consider getting one, for the home and for the office.
For best protection and prevention I do all three, so I spray the sinuses and spray my mouth with the Sore Throat 1%. This I carry with me and so use it constantly, then I nebulize when I get home.
For more info please have a look at the website https://woundcarespray.wordpress.com