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While the humidity of autumn is already well established, colds are starting to come one after another, especially among the youngest. But according to a recent Scottish study, a simple treatment, often put aside, would be enough to cure your children more quickly.
There you go, it’s autumn. The season of walks in the forest, and… runny noses. With the temperatures getting colder, many of us are experiencing colds, our children first in line.
The common cold, a benign illness that passes alone
The common cold, or nasopharyngitis, is indeed a great classic that is shared in classes during this period. Fortunately, it is not very dangerous, but it is especially annoying for its uncomfortable symptoms which can last from 5 to 15 days.
- A runny nose or a blocked nose;
- Sneezing;
- Dryness, even burning in the nasopharynx;
- Itchy nose which can cause sneezing;
- Watery eyes;
- Aches;
- Dull pain in the ears (or a feeling of blocked ears);
- Sometimes fever and headaches.
However, if the body is recovering little by little, knowing that there is a way to quickly reduce discomfort in younger people is always interesting.
Drops of saline solution in the nose: a demonstrated benefit
Faced with your children’s cold, there is therefore one action to know according to scientists based in Edinburgh, Scotland, that of cleaning your children’s noses with salt water.
The latter thus tried different treatments to combat nasopharyngitis on 407 children aged six or under, 301 of whom caught a cold. After several weeks of analysis, researchers found that children who were given salt water up their noses recovered in six days instead of eight, on average. Children who received salt water nasal drops also needed fewer medications during their illness and shared their colds less with their families.
Why do saline solutions feel good?
The practice, well known in Asia in particular, is also known here (the shelves of our pharmacies provide proof of this). However, many of us forget this simple gesture in the event of a cold, and even fewer impose it on our children. This is wrong.
“Salt is made up of sodium and chloride. Chloride is used by the cells lining the nose and windpipe to produce hypochlorous acid in the cells, which they use to defend against viral infection. Giving extra chloride to the cells lining the nose, this helps the cells produce more hypochlorous acid, which helps suppress viral replication, thereby reducing the duration of viral infection and therefore the duration of symptoms. explained Dr Sandeep Ramalingam, virologist, co-author of the study during the last congress of the European Respiratory Society last month.
According to him, children have up to 10 to 12 upper respiratory infections, what we call colds, per year, which has a significant impact on them and their families. “There are medications to improve symptoms, such as paracetamol andibuprofenbut no treatment can cure a cold more quickly. This is now the case with a simple hypertonic solution.
Slide: 10 remedies to naturally treat a cold