Yaakov ben Avraham

MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« on: September 18, 2014, 03:02:58 PM »
Greetings!

I wasn't sure where to put this question, so I opted for S&AS. If it belongs somewhere else, the Censors are welcome to put it elsewhere, and I won't be offended.

I have a question, but first a little background. I have had serious sinus issues since I was 12 (I am now 40) that have kept me blowing my nose on average about every 5-10 minutes since the Seventh Grade. It is painful, annoying to myself and others, and just downright a pain in the arse. I have been on various prescription nasal sprays (right now I am on Flo-nase), and, although it helps marginally (insofar as I can breathe at all), it is only of marginal benefit. Well, to make a long story short, friends have been recommending that I use saline nasal spray.

I finally broke down and bought a bottle two days ago. I have used it about four times a day. And, holy crap! I have gone from blowing my nose every 5-10 minutes to maybe once every hour! Its less painful, I can actually breathe through my nose for the first time in my life since adolescence, although I still can't get enough air that way, its less annoying to me and others, I mean, wow, its like a whole new world in the respiratory department!

What I want to know is simple: How the hell does this stuff work? I mean, its not even medicated! Its salt water, for heaven's sake! So why so much relief? Not that I am bitching, mind you! I have never been so happy in all my life! But I want to know, how exactly does this work?

So, are there any doctors, nurses, or other health professionals that can explain this to me? I would really appreciate it! Thanks!

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Offline Lord Dave

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #1 on: September 18, 2014, 03:11:45 PM »
You swallow the snot.
It mixes then drops down the back of your throat.

*based on my general knowledge of biology.  May not be correct.  Consult your doctor.
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Offline markjo

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #2 on: September 18, 2014, 05:02:05 PM »
What I want to know is simple: How the hell does this stuff work? I mean, its not even medicated! Its salt water, for heaven's sake! So why so much relief? Not that I am bitching, mind you! I have never been so happy in all my life! But I want to know, how exactly does this work?

So, are there any doctors, nurses, or other health professionals that can explain this to me? I would really appreciate it! Thanks!

Google is your friend.
Some studies support the use of saline solution (salt water) to restore moisture to dry nasal passages and sinuses and to lessen the inflammation of mucous membranes. Findings show that if saline irrigation is used regularly, it can help to thin mucus, decrease postnasal drip, and cleanse your nasal passages of bacteria.
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Yaakov ben Avraham

Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #3 on: September 18, 2014, 05:04:17 PM »
Yes, but I was wondering at the mechanism behind that. I know what it does. But my question was how.

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Offline markjo

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #4 on: September 18, 2014, 05:21:11 PM »
???  You're wondering how water can thin out thick mucus?  I'm guessing that it's in pretty much the same way that liquids thin out pretty much any thick substance.
Abandon hope all ye who press enter here.

Science is what happens when preconception meets verification.

Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge. -- Charles Darwin

If you can't demonstrate it, then you shouldn't believe it.

Yaakov ben Avraham

Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #5 on: September 18, 2014, 05:22:03 PM »
I guess you have a point.

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Offline Tau

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #6 on: September 18, 2014, 06:22:10 PM »
It's more than that, but it depends on the saline. Somewhere on the saline bottle it'll say either isotonic or hypertonic. If it's isotonic all it does is thin out the fluid. If it's hypertonic it also dries out the cells in your nose. Basically, cell membranes allow water to move fairly easily in and out of a cell and if there's more stuff in the fluid outside the cell than there is in the fluid in the cell water will tend to be forced out of the cell. It's more or less just diffusion.
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Offline Pete Svarrior

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #7 on: September 18, 2014, 06:26:23 PM »
It's more osmosis than diffusion, but yeah.
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Yaakov ben Avraham

Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #8 on: September 18, 2014, 06:27:21 PM »
I know that some stuff has more salt than is in your body, some stuff has the same amount, and some stuff has less. This stuff has less. Its the Generic equivalent of Ocean Nasal Spray, ingredients as follows:

purified water
sodium chloride 0.65%
disodium phosphate
phenylcarbinol (a preservative)
monosodium phosphate
benzalkonium chloride (a preservative)

Does that help?

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Offline Tau

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #9 on: September 18, 2014, 06:33:37 PM »
I know that some stuff has more salt than is in your body, some stuff has the same amount, and some stuff has less. This stuff has less. Its the Generic equivalent of Ocean Nasal Spray, ingredients as follows:

purified water
sodium chloride 0.65%
disodium phosphate
phenylcarbinol (a preservative)
monosodium phosphate
benzalkonium chloride (a preservative)

Does that help?

If it's hypotonic then some of the saline solution is being absorbed into the cells. Is it supposed to be a moisturizer?
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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #10 on: September 18, 2014, 07:52:55 PM »
Have you tried using a neti pot? I've heard they work well for congestion.
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Offline Tom Bishop

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #11 on: September 20, 2014, 07:44:50 AM »
3500 milligrams of powdered unbuffered Vitamin C, taken 8 times a day, can cure a chronic sinus infection over a weekend.

Thork

Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #12 on: September 20, 2014, 10:25:34 AM »
Dr Birley's Phosphorous Tonic is very good at curing this. If you need help preparing this, I have a recipe.

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Offline Rushy

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #13 on: September 20, 2014, 01:57:24 PM »
3500 milligrams of powdered unbuffered Vitamin C, taken 8 times a day, can cure a chronic sinus infection over a weekend.

Tom, the only thing that overdose is going to do is make your piss more expensive than usual.

Ghost of V

Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #14 on: September 20, 2014, 05:00:38 PM »
3500 milligrams of powdered unbuffered Vitamin C, taken 8 times a day, can cure a chronic sinus infection over a weekend.

Tom, the only thing that overdose is going to do is make your piss more expensive than usual.

It can also cause:
Diarrhea
Nausea
Vomiting
Heartburn
Abdominal bloating and cramps
Headache
Insomnia
Kidney stones

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Offline Tom Bishop

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #15 on: September 20, 2014, 08:25:22 PM »
3500 milligrams of powdered unbuffered Vitamin C, taken 8 times a day, can cure a chronic sinus infection over a weekend.

Tom, the only thing that overdose is going to do is make your piss more expensive than usual.

Incorrect. Vitamin C is powerful against microbes invading the body. There are a big list of diseases it can treat.

It is a common remedy for sinus infections: http://www.sinus-pro.com/Archive/articles%202011/Vitamin_C_Ideal_for_Fighting_Sinus_Infections.asp

3500 milligrams of powdered unbuffered Vitamin C, taken 8 times a day, can cure a chronic sinus infection over a weekend.

Tom, the only thing that overdose is going to do is make your piss more expensive than usual.

It can also cause:
Diarrhea
Nausea
Vomiting
Heartburn
Abdominal bloating and cramps
Headache
Insomnia
Kidney stones

You forgot the side effect of curing a chronic disease.

Kidney stones are pretty rare. Nausea is temporary, and a good thing because it means the Vitamin C is killing the microbes infecting the body, which explode into toxins as they die. This is eventually cleaned up by the body. Insomnia would be temporary, as the body adjusts its energy levels to account for the reduced load of bacteria and viruses it must contend with.

The remaining symptoms of abdominal pain and heartburn can happen, but only if you way overdo it, since unbuffered Vitamin C is an acid. If one wishes, they can use a buffered solution with a ph that matches the human body, which is effective, but won't be as powerful as the unbuffered kind.

The risks of some minor temporary discomfort are easily outweighed by the benefits Vitamin C has with many different kinds of illnesses.

See: http://www.doctoryourself.com/klennerpaper.html
« Last Edit: September 20, 2014, 09:13:38 PM by Tom Bishop »

Ghost of V

Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #16 on: September 20, 2014, 09:35:49 PM »

You forgot the side effect of curing a chronic disease.


Eh. There are conventional medicines that do the trick better than overdosing on Vitamin C.

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Offline Tom Bishop

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #17 on: September 20, 2014, 10:06:35 PM »

You forgot the side effect of curing a chronic disease.


Eh. There are conventional medicines that do the trick better than overdosing on Vitamin C.

Vitamin C overdose is not lethal. It causes diarrhea once bowel tolerance is met. And when you reach your bowel tolerance, you then know how much to stay under. No one has died due to Vitamin C overdose. Vitamin C is an vitamin natural to the body. The body knows what to do with vitamins when there is too much of it.

Synthetic medicines are known to be lethal, on the other hand. The body does not recognize synthetic medicines, and doesn't know what to do with them. This is why many drugs have a list of side effects as long as your arm. It's a foreign, unnatural chemical. When chemicals hang around they cause damage.

More than twice as many people die from prescription drugs than from car accidents.

Would you rather put a substance into your body that is natural to it, or would you rather put an unnatural, synthetic substance?
« Last Edit: September 20, 2014, 10:43:30 PM by Tom Bishop »

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Offline Tau

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #18 on: September 20, 2014, 10:41:16 PM »

You forgot the side effect of curing a chronic disease.


Eh. There are conventional medicines that do the trick better than overdosing on Vitamin C.

Vitamin C overdose is not lethal. It causes diarrhea once bowel tolerance is met. And when you reach your bowel tolerance, you then know how much to stay under. No one has died due to Vitamin C overdose. Vitamin C is an vitamin natural to the body. The body knows what to do with vitamins when there is too much of it.

Synthetic medicines are known to be lethal, on the other hand. The body does not recognize synthetic medicines, and doesn't know what to do with them. This is why many drugs have a list of side effects as long as your arm. It's a foreign, unnatural chemical. When chemicals hang around they cause damage.

More than twice as many people die from prescription drugs than from car accidents.

Would you rather put a substance into your body that is natural to it, or would you rather put an unnatural, synthetic substance?

That's not how biochemistry works
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Offline Tom Bishop

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Re: MEDICAL QUESTION: How does saline spray work?
« Reply #19 on: September 20, 2014, 10:49:10 PM »
That's not how biochemistry works

You can't overdose and die from most natural substances such as vitamins and herbs. If the body doesn't like it, it just gets rid of it. The body and bowel regulates how much Vitamin C it should absorb, and if there's too much, it just allows it to pass through.

Over many millions of years, the mammalian body has gotten to know Vitamin C very intimately. Gaining defenses against eating too many strawberries is something that would have been done very early on in evolution.
« Last Edit: September 20, 2014, 10:51:11 PM by Tom Bishop »