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Exact salt/bicarb. proportions not critical, the baking soda is just there as a buffer (I use ~2-3 parts salt/1 part bicarb). But you want the solution slightly hypertonic to help reduce swelling, so 1/2 tsp or a bit more in a cup of water is good (you can gradually increase the concentration over time, if needed, as your nose gets used to it). There is evidence of additional benefit with consistent use over several months for allergies/sinusitis, so if you need this, just bite the salt tablet and do it 1-2x every day. As for iodized salt, I keep seeing this warning and have never seen any study. But iodine is an essential nutrient, we eat iodized salt, and it's present in seawater. A recent Korean study found 434 ± 73.6 μg/100 g of iodine in sea salt, about 1/10th the level of fortification, and I see people recommend using sea salt all the time. Table salt has additives to reduce clumping that slow down dissolving in water, so using some other form (e.g., pickling salt, if you can find it - finely ground and no additives) will dissolve faster.
There have been a very small # of reported cases, but it is usually fatal. So use boiled or distilled (or even filtered, like with a camping filter) water if you can, but don't freak out of you can't - the risk is tiny. (And that CDC ref. does give instructions for using bleach, should you happen to have that but no access to boiled/distilled/filtered water and want to be extra safe.)The reason for using sterilized water is the very small, but real risk of contracting primary amebic meningoencephalitis. The ameoba can be present in tap water. Since the fatality rate from infection is 97%, I think it's worth boiling some water and then setting it aside for this purpose.
General Information | Naegleria fowleri | CDC
Frequently asked questions about naegleria. Education and information about the brain eating ameba Naegleria fowleri that causes encephalitis and death including frequently asked questions, biology, sources of infection, diagnosis, treatment, prevention and control, and other publications and...www.cdc.gov
Phenylephrine was judged to be safe, but no more effective than placebo as a decongestant. That is why there is a move to have it eliminated.
Wow . . . so what I suspected was actually true all along. It's a pain to ask the pharmacist for the pseudoephedrine behind the counter, but it definitely works better. (Personally, I find it helps more with sinus squeeze than ear issues, but everyone is different, talk to your doctor, etc.)For those of you who missed the news in the last 2-3 days about OTC Sudafed PE, here is one article:
The spectacular downfall of a common, useless cold medicine
This week's unanimous vote on phenylephrine's ineffectiveness was decades in the making.
